I Start with 13 Hidden Traits Chapter-111

Ch-111

—

The main article featured in the newspaper had also been one praising the Alliance.

*‘Why, you ask?’*

Park Tae-woo let out a heavy sigh and ruffled his hair in frustration.

“It’s because everyone keeps spouting carefree nonsense.”

“Aren’t things carefree right now? Everyone’s completed their contracts and…”

As he said, it was a time of peace and prosperity.

Until just recently, the Alliance had been struggling from a shortage of *Fragments of the Golden Scale*.

In the end, every member of the Alliance entered a “contract” with specific Constellations, securing the fragments they lacked. Their combat strength had risen noticeably once they’d even been granted the Constellations’ special skills.

Ever since then, they had been exterminating every monster coming through the warp gates opening in Korea, achieving victory after victory. On the surface, there was nothing at all to worry about.

“You know that’s not the issue.”

But Alliance Leader Park Tae-woo’s expression remained stiff.

They had put out the immediate fire, but what came after was the problem.

He had become a hero representing Korea overnight, but even he could do nothing about this disaster.

A catastrophe that could not be resisted—a “calamity” stood before them.

“That warp isn’t something that only formed in Korea, is it?”

That warp.

He meant the newly discovered red warp that had recently appeared.

It was the very same type of warp that had shown up in Delphia right before the Four Calamities invaded.

‘The red, invasion-type warp discovered in Jeju last week. We barely managed to hide it, but if that thing is a harbinger of the Four Calamities’ invasion…’

A red warp believed to have formed in Jeju after Delphia fell.

If it truly signaled the coming invasion of the Four Calamities, then there was no possible answer.

And yet, Korea was not the only place where a red warp had appeared.

Three places had been confirmed in secret, including Korea.

The problem was—

*‘…The only warp that’s expanding is the one in Jeju.’*

The warp they had hidden had begun to expand.

If this wasn’t a precursor to invasion, then what was it?

No matter how positively he tried to think, it could only feel hopeless.

*‘Why? Why does it have to be Jeju? Of all the vast places on Earth—why there…!’*

Just when the Hero Alliance had finally begun to gain solid footing in Korea…

All they needed now was to occupy the remaining cities in Pangaenia, and everything would be perfect.

They had envisioned building their stronghold and soaring upward toward a golden future.

But if the Four Calamities attacked through Jeju, that hope would turn to ashes instantly.

As written in the official notice—once the remaining four neutral cities fell, the Four Calamities would then move toward Earth.

And most likely, to Korea. The odds of them coming through Jeju overflowed.

It was a secret known only to a select few in the Alliance, but how much longer could they hide it?

The Alliance Leader unlocked his phone and replayed the saved video once more.

—*Honored warriors. Bring me the Soul of Hydragon. Then I will personally lead the charge and slay the Four Calamities. …Time is running out.*

The short video Gracia had left behind had already surpassed ten million views.

The comments were filled with talk of the Four Calamities and speculation that Gracia seemed unwell.

His hair had turned completely white.

His once-robust appearance was gone—he looked almost enlightened, detached from worldly things.

No one knew what he had experienced in that time, but one thing was certain: if the Four Calamities invaded, their only hope was Gracia.

Park Tae-woo made his decision and spoke.

“Summon all Alliance members.”

“Right now?”

“Yes. Immediately.”

A full-force mobilization was rare.

Especially at a time like this.

“…May I ask why?”

“We are going to scour Eunpyeong District and find the player who possesses the ‘Soul of Hydragon.’”

At the beginning of the monster invasions—

There had been a player in Eunpyeong who summoned Hydragon and hunted the Giant Mantis. If they summoned it on Earth, they must have used the Soul.

But the player was unregistered—a recluse.

Recluses did not want their identity revealed.

Naturally, they hid themselves so deeply that no one could find them.

“And once we find this person… what do we do?”

“…If I must, I’ll get on my knees and beg.”

“…Understood. I’ll issue the emergency full-unit mobilization.”

For the Alliance Leader to speak like this meant he was truly desperate.

Finding a recluse wouldn’t be easy, but he wasn’t worried.

If the entire Alliance was mobilized, it was impossible not to find them.

*

*

 

—*Then, let’s make a bet.*

No. 1 said he would ask one last time.

He asked whether Hudson was a player.

I accepted the question lightly.

—*…A bet? On whether No. 2, Hudson, is a player or not?*

—*Of course. If what I saw and what you saw are different, then we can only settle it with a bet. What, are you afraid?*

I pressed him hard.

From the first meeting, this No. 1 had thrown me off in a strange way. Unlike the powerful opponents I had met before, I could not grasp his true identity.

But not anymore.

*‘This is all a show.’*

A show.

A performance entirely staged for the audience.

There were plenty of reasons to be certain.

First—

*‘On the first day, No. 68 disappeared.’*

No. 68 had reacted to the news that Delphia had fallen, and the next day he vanished without a trace.

They were certain he was a player and either killed him or imprisoned him somewhere.

That part wasn’t strange.

The problem was the next day.

*‘On the second day, No. 76 was beheaded by the Reaper in the auction house.’*

The man whose head was cut off was No. 76.

But something didn’t add up.

Why?

Why kill him in the auction house?

They could have handled it quietly like No. 68.

If there were a method to identify players, it was far better to deal with them secretly. There was no reason to raise alarm or induce chaos.

And that wasn’t the only strange thing.

*‘After he died, they sprinkled the white powder. And then the Earthling appearance was revealed.’*

From a player’s perspective, it was a horrifying sight.

Even if the body was dead, the boundary between login and logout had been shattered.

But thinking differently—it was suspicious.

*‘Was that really the player’s true appearance? Couldn’t they have simply altered the outer form?’*

The Empire knew of the players.

Those who had long feared and ostracized the players could not be ignorant of Earth.

A corpse was a corpse. They might have simply modified the appearance.

And even if that really was the body from Earth—why sprinkle the powder *after death*?

*‘…Before heading to Cramdel, when I encountered the corpse crow—something similar happened.’*

Two children trapped in a dungeon.

The boy and girl had been bait created by the corpse crow to lure players.

But their forms were unmistakably those of Earth’s children.

Why would children summoned as players appear in the form of Earthlings?

*‘Back then, the corpse crow read their memories and reconstructed them. So they appeared as Earth children—forms guaranteed to catch a player’s attention.’*

I, too, had nearly been fooled.

But the only way the corpse crow could know the children’s original forms was by rifling through their memories.

I had already seen a technique where a corpse’s memory was used to reconstruct its form.

If the white powder served a similar function—

And more importantly—

There was one more thing bothering me.

*‘Why did they incinerate the body immediately?’*

It wasn’t simply to intimidate.

It was to prevent the “show” from being exposed.

If the reconstruction was based on memory alone, subtle inconsistencies would inevitably appear.

Just like I had discerned the children’s true identities and used that to turn the corpse crow’s plan back on itself.

*‘If my reasoning is right… then there is no definite way to distinguish players.’*

So I could only trust my reasoning.

Soon, No. 1 spoke again.

—*Fine. What shall we wager? The Throne of Light you’ve put up?*

—*Well then, do you have anything worthy of wagering against a throne?*

When the Baal armor became an auction item, I hadn’t bid on it.

Which meant he likely didn’t know what I desired.

—*Hmm. It would take some time to prepare a unique-grade item… but what about two of the items I displayed during the auction? Their value should be roughly comparable.*

—*Three.*

—*…You’re quite greedy.*

No compromise.

If he wouldn’t agree, it meant he was admitting that what he’d seen was wrong.

He shrugged.

—*Very well. But then we must ensure the selection is certain.*

A smile crept onto No. 1’s lips.

…Still an inscrutable bastard.

But he seemed convinced that Hudson was a player.

As if he were certain he had a way to confirm it.

“From this moment, those on the right side will immerse their hands in this ‘Powder of Truth.’”

At the words of the Silver Fox Mask, the hooded devotees brought in a large oak cask.

‘I can’t see.’

If I could see clearly, I might be able to identify what was inside.

But from my position, it wasn’t visible.

A cask drilled with only a small hole large enough for a hand.

The entire exterior was coated with strange substances.

To prevent inspection of the interior.

‘They’re wary of strong observational skills, or Great Sages.’

So they’d made it impossible to see.

I didn’t know what was inside either, but my mind spun quickly.

*‘Something that alters appearance based on memory…’*

For both the dead and the living—did such a thing exist?

Even if it wasn’t a powder, if they were staging a show, then the powder could easily be a trick.

And the instantaneous incineration of the corpse followed the same logic.

Soon, a name flashed through my mind.

*‘Highest-grade Appearance-Alteration Elixir.’*

…It did exist.

The Highest-Grade Appearance-Alteration Elixir!

The treasure Isaac had desperately searched for.

A legendary elixir that changed one’s form into whatever appearance they desired—perfectly and completely.

If that was what this was, then the “desired appearance” would naturally default to one’s strongest memory.

The most vivid impression, the most powerful form.

Calling it the “Powder of Truth” was merely a disguise—forcing them to transform into their Earth forms.

“When you immerse your hand into the powder, your true form will emerge. Of course, only the guilty will change.”

He was talking too much.

He was personally explaining it.

Until now, they had simply proceeded however they wished.

This was clearly meant to provoke a reaction from players.

“No. 2. Put your hand into the cask.”

At the same time, Hudson’s eyes trembled slightly.

But if my theory was correct, the substance inside was the *Highest-Grade Appearance-Alteration Elixir*.

Nothing else could forcibly transform one’s appearance according to the strongest memory.

Then should I tell him *not* to think of “Oliver”?

*‘Tell someone not to think of something, and they’ll think of it even more.’*

And already, Hudson was likely imagining himself on Earth—his form as Oliver.

I couldn’t add fuel to the fire.

I had to change his entire line of thought.

—*Hudson. When we return, we’ll finally be able to fully awaken Serengeti.*

—*…*

I used the golden line of connection to speak. Hudson didn’t answer.

He wasn’t even looking my way.

He was enduring everything alone so that I wouldn’t suffer even the slightest harm.

—*Think about it. Reuniting with Serengeti completely. If you marry her, I’ll officiate the ceremony myself.*

—*…*

—*Imagine Serengeti wearing a wedding dress, walking down the aisle with you. And it won’t just be imagination. It’ll soon be reality.*

I could not lose Hudson here.

If he were exposed, we would have to escape together.

If they had only suspended the warp’s activation, we could restart it later with Hel.

Swoosh!

Hudson thrust his hand into the oak cask.

And then—

Fwoooosh!

Hudson’s appearance began to change.

From the top of his head to the tips of his toes.

“H-H-He transformed!”

“But that appearance is…”

“…The Knight of Pure White?”

He had taken on the form of the Pure White Knight—Serengeti.

The very figure everyone knew well, the closest aide to the Knight King Wilhelm.

And not only that—he stood there wearing the immaculate white armor, dignified exactly as remembered.

“……That’s impossible.”

For the first time, the man known as No. 1 furrowed his brows.

Just as things were beginning—

‘……’

Hudson slowly closed his eyes.

The Powder of Truth.

The toxin he had seen back at the auction house—one that transformed a person’s body into their Earth form.

A deadly poison that no player should ever allow to touch their skin.

But there had been no other way.

 

 

 

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