I Start with 13 Hidden Traits Chapter-409

**Chapter 409. It’s So Frustrating I’ll Do It Myself**

—

The Sal-gwi did not trust humans.

Even when his own master had tried to kill him, he had already foreseen it.

No matter how close someone was, remaining wary and prepared—

That was how the Sal-gwi faced the world.

And so.

“Easy.”

The Great Expedition progressed smoothly.

Wilhelm’s body was far sturdier than expected, and his reactions were no different from reality.

Soldiers deserting?

Knights betraying him?

So what. None of that mattered to him in the slightest.

He never expected anything from them to begin with.

Overcoming adversity with nothing but one’s own strength.

Conquering the Undead King Ahram was far too easy.

The bastard’s movements were monotonous.

Even the irregularity of the undead was predictable.

On the other hand—Wilhelm.

This man’s body was thoroughly honed.

Forged so that victory could be achieved under any circumstances.

“Excellent.”

After clearing Ahram, the Sal-gwi let out a murmur of admiration.

Wilhelm’s body was flawless.

Though it was a different type from his own as an assassin, it reacted far more keenly.

The density of muscle and the flexibility of the body were on an entirely different level.

Add to that the qualities of an assassin, and it could be called invincible without exaggeration.

With a body like this, completing the Great Expedition didn’t seem impossible at all.

No—rather.

‘You couldn’t do something this easy?’

The other Phantoms’ avatars almost seemed laughable.

Even with the same avatar, skill clearly wasn’t equal.

Then came the search for the weakness of the Second Lord, Issera.

It was troublesome and required some effort, but given time, it was entirely doable.

The Third Lord, Mammon?

Mammon’s destructive power, wielding primordial spirits, was impressive, but he was weak to surprise attacks.

And ambushing, hiding one’s body, and finding weaknesses—those were things the Sal-gwi had long mastered.

“What, there’s no one left already?”

The Sal-gwi turned around.

When he finished conquering the Third Lord, Mammon—

There were no soldiers or knights left behind him.

No priests, no saintesses, none of those who had offered help.

In order to find Issera’s weakness, he had thrown the soldiers in, and when he hid himself to ambush Mammon, the remaining ones were annihilated by the primordial spirits’ attacks.

“Tsk. They weren’t much help anyway.”

It didn’t matter much.

He just needed to be more careful from here on.

It would simply require more effort and time.

The Sal-gwi hid himself.

He erased his presence, stifled all signs of life.

In a sense, with the Sal-gwi’s ability to “see possibilities” added, Wilhelm was even stronger than during the original Great Expedition.

Just as he had killed the Black King, he could calmly deal with the remaining Lords as well.

If he reached the Demon King, Phantom would awaken too.

There was nothing he couldn’t do.

If he truly wished it, the Sal-gwi could even kill a god.

“……”

But soon, the Sal-gwi realized that something was wrong.

Up to the Third Lord, he could manage alone, more or less.

From the Fourth Lord onward, everything changed.

An opening?

None.

Time?

Not enough.

A monster that could never be overcome by strength alone!

Even after barely pushing through by breaking miracle-level odds—

“……”

He was exhausted.

The Demon Realm gave him no time to rest.

It demanded constant conquest, driving him relentlessly forward.

Even while hidden, they found him as if guided by ghosts.

‘The Demon King… the demons know Wilhelm. They prepared thoroughly for the Great Expedition. This is… this was an unwinnable fight from the start.’

Ah.

What meaning did assassination have against enemies who were already on guard, knowing the attack would come?

In the end, the Sal-gwi died once while fighting the Fourth Lord.

It took seven attempts to kill the Fourth Lord, around twenty retries to behead the Fifth Lord.

The Sixth Lord took more than fifty.

And then—

—Pathetic, Wilhelm.

The Seventh Lord, Basara.

That wall—he could not overcome it.

He retried over a hundred times, but the result was the same.

Basara saw through everything about him.

As if she could read his thoughts.

“How on earth…!”

There was no way he could understand it.

Surely Phantom had cleared it with Wilhelm’s body as well.

So why, under the same conditions and circumstances, could he not defeat Basara?

If the Seventh Lord was like this, he couldn’t even imagine how strong the Eighth Lord would be.

And the Demon King?

……To think this had been done in a single attempt.

‘Right. It’s the information gap. Phantom knew far more about the Demon Realm, about the Lords.’

That was the only difference.

Trying to accomplish something that would go down in history like the “Great Expedition” without knowing anything at all was absurd to begin with.

……But thinking back—

Weren’t all “survival quests” like that?

Phantom too had to keep avatars alive without any information.

The Sal-gwi himself was no different.

‘Damn it…’

For the first time, the Sal-gwi felt a gap.

He, who had never felt inferior to anyone.

Yet he couldn’t easily accept it.

That was when—

—That’s not how you do it.

……He heard someone’s voice.

A voice that sounded as if something were being forcefully held back.

Not how you do it—what did that mean?

Was someone watching him conduct the Great Expedition right now?

If so, who?

—Ha… it’s so frustrating.

…What?

What did he just say?

‘Frustrating?’

His brow furrowed instinctively.

Because it was clear the voice was calling his actions frustrating.

After all, he had failed to succeed even after more than a hundred attempts.

‘If it’s so frustrating, then you try it yourself.’

The Sal-gwi was certain.

The probability of completing this Great Expedition was zero.

Not even 0.000001%—just a number endlessly converging on zero.

Even if Phantom tried again, it would be beyond imagining.

Naturally, the man whose voice he’d just heard wouldn’t succeed either.

Then the man said—

—Everyone, step aside. It’s frustrating, so I’ll do it myself.

*

*

 

Only a handful of people knew about the progress of the Great Expedition.

Even then, only Serengeti and Saintess Seia truly watched Wilhelm to the end.

But even they didn’t know everything.

The conquest of the Demon Realm wasn’t kind enough to allow someone to just stand by and watch.

It was a place where one had to overcome everything without even a moment to avert one’s eyes.

Thus—

‘…This is my first time moving directly.’

I opened my eyes.

Not to a game screen, but directly to Wilhelm’s point of view.

“We depart for the Demon Realm!”

“For the peace of Pangaenia!”

“For the prosperity of mankind!”

“Waaaah—!”

Before I knew it, the Great Expedition had begun.

This was probably my lingering regret.

The desire to personally lead the Great Expedition, made manifest.

Games alone had their limits.

‘So this is how Wilhelm felt.’

My chest swelled.

Watching the endless ranks of soldiers and knights stretch out like the sea.

Even if not all of them shared my feelings.

I slowly spoke to them.

“I promise you. I will never abandon you.”

No other words were needed.

If you’re afraid, you may flee. If it’s too much, you may lay down your sword.

Even if you have other intentions, I’ll forgive you.

But I will not abandon you.

I will never forget those who trusted me and followed.

I turned my back once more.

A black warp leading to the Demon Realm.

I knew that once I entered, I might never return.

“Let’s go.”

…That too was the fate of a Knight King.

*

“……”

The Sal-gwi quietly watched the scene unfolding before him.

It felt as if he were merely observing from the side, knowing that the one moving Wilhelm’s body now was Phantom.

At first, he didn’t know.

What Phantom had that he didn’t.

But as time passed, the Sal-gwi began to see the difference between Phantom and himself.

‘He doesn’t turn his back.’

Never—not once—did he turn away.

He always led from the front, preventing the soldiers’ and knights’ morale from faltering.

He didn’t hide. He didn’t avoid.

……He only believed.

Phantom knew.

He knew there would be traitors within.

Knowing that someone had informed the Demon Realm of the Great Expedition, he pressed forward anyway.

Even under such circumstances—

…He must have known how futile the word “trust” could be.

‘He’s different.’

It was strange.

When the Sal-gwi had acted, many blades had aimed for his back.

But when Phantom acted… there were none.

Some deserted, yes—but none attacked him.

Was it because everyone was watching?

No, that didn’t seem to be the only reason.

Though his back, facing only forward, was full of openings—

…No one could bring themselves to strike.

And that wasn’t all.

‘So heavy.’

Each of his actions, even the weight of his sword—

Were incomparably heavier.

Strange.

They shared the same body—so why was there such a difference?

When they finally reached the Fourth Lord, the survival rate was beyond comparison.

Even if he had experienced it once before… hadn’t the Sal-gwi also challenged it over a hundred times?

Yet whenever he reached the Fourth Lord, not a single person survived.

But Phantom showed a miraculous 50% survival rate.

Instead, his own condition was dire.

‘What meaning is there in sacrificing your own body to save soldiers?’

A body in tatters.

His stamina seemed completely drained.

They hadn’t even reached halfway, yet he was already in that state—there was no need to see more.

‘Turn back. Recover your body.’

It seemed urgent that he turn away now, letting the soldiers and knights fight while he recovered even a little.

But—

Grin!

‘…He’s smiling?’

He was smiling.

As if he were enjoying the situation.

Far from turning back, he charged in with even greater momentum.

Severe injuries didn’t matter.

It was as if he had already thrown away his life.

Then, astonishing things began to happen one after another.

“Don’t stop!”

“Follow the Knight King!”

“Advance!”

“Do not fear death!”

The soldiers and knights who had been watching him began to fight with everything they had.

Even those who had betrayed him raised their swords with a single will.

…What is that?

It was absurd.

They were different—far too different.

One thing was certain: Wilhelm and Phantom possessed something that made the hearts of those watching pound.

His figure, never turning his back—

…Made the heart ache.

Self-sacrifice.

Devotion for others.

‘Did such a thing even exist?’

The Sal-gwi did not trust people.

He did not rely on them.

But he was different.

Phantom was.

He was—

‘More sincere about Pangaenia than anyone.’

He truly loved this world.

For their “survival,” he gave everything he had.

He didn’t see them as mere game avatars, but as adversities he himself had to overcome.

How could one hate someone like that?

“Huff! Huff!”

Even as he gasped for breath, he looked happy.

The Sal-gwi couldn’t understand what made him happy—but it was certain that Phantom was enjoying this moment.

As if he had finally found his true self.

‘…Impressive.’

He had no choice but to admit it.

Whether he challenged it a hundred times, a thousand times, ten thousand times—

He would never defeat Phantom.

Because he was not as sincere as Phantom.

Because he didn’t love the world—or himself—to that extent.

Phantom beheaded the Fourth Lord and smashed the Fifth Lord’s head.

The Sixth Lord, the Seventh Lord…

Finally, even the Eighth Lord.

After clearing all the Lords, he fought the Demon King.

And then—

“Yeah, this is the taste!”

He killed the Demon King.

In front of all avatars, in a single attempt.

Saying it was frustrating so he’d do it himself—

……It was an event that vividly demonstrated the difference in class between Phantom and the rest.