I Became a Swordsmanship Genius in the Game

Chapter 14 Market

At the entrance of the market, there was a huge revolving door.

Four large handles were on the revolving door.

Two skeleton soldiers were holding each handle, personally turning it.

RUMBLE—

An eternally revolving door, turned by eternally undying undead.

“Literally perpetual motion.”

As Hyunwoo muttered and passed through the revolving door, he felt the skeletons’ gazes.

Clatter—

All that could be seen in the dark entrance was a green glow.

Hyunwoo swallowed dryly.

‘…They’re glaring like hell.’

It wasn't just a stare; he felt an intangible pressure.

The skeletons were both the power source for the revolving door and the guards of the market.

Beings that checked the badges for market entry.

Hyunwoo pushed out the badge on his left chest to make it clearly visible and passed by them.

He knew they wouldn't stop him since he had the badge, but his heart trembled at their murderous glare.

‘Would I stand a chance if I fought them?’

For a moment, he imagined a fight with the skeleton soldiers, but the outcome was decided easily.

It would end with his defeat in an instant.

They looked like simple skeleton soldiers, but they were not to be underestimated.

They were skeleton soldiers made from skilled retired gladiators.

‘…I should be careful.’

The inside of the market was also full of guys like them.

Causing a commotion here would mean immediate death.

Once he had completely passed through the revolving door, the skeleton soldiers' gazes were withdrawn.

Freed from the pressure, Hyunwoo let out a sigh.

“Phew. It's damn intense just to do some shopping.”

Behind the revolving door were doors leading to various floors.

A number was written on each door.

‘1, 2, 3… This means the floors I can go to, right?’

The only space allowed for Hyunwoo, a Bronze gladiator, was the basement floor of the market.

Hyunwoo looked for the door leading to the basement, not the ones with numbers.

“The one to the basement is… B1. This is it.”

The market was easy to imagine if one thought of a department store.

Each floor was separate, and they handled various products.

There was a reason why the spaces leading to each floor were divided instead of having a single passage.

‘It’s because the Demon World is a strict class-based society.’

In the Demon World, where discrimination between classes was clear, there were no spaces that everyone could use amicably together.

The same went for the Arena.

Upon opening the door and descending to the basement floor, a variety of scenes greeted Hyunwoo.

Shops selling food, weapons, and potions were easily recognizable.

The difference from an actual department store was that the shop owners were residents of the Demon World.

And also that they sold bizarre things.

Other than that, at a glance, it looked just like a typical market scene.

‘Should I think of it as a flea market in a department store?’

On the other hand, there were also shops where it was questionable what they even sold.

“Kuaaaaaaah!”

The screams coming from inside the shop were vivid.

“What do they do in there…?”

I didn't particularly want to know.

Hyunwoo avoided the scream-filled shop and went deeper inside.

He also saw residents of the Demon World walking around the streets.

The ones that looked similar to humans were fine, but….

There were more with bizarre appearances.

From a distance, it looked vaguely like a Halloween party scene.

Rumble—

‘Ugh….’

A creature that looked like a caterpillar passed by Hyunwoo.

Every time he saw creatures that provoked revulsion just by looking at them, he walked at a distance.

The scenery of the market, which seemed like it would be bad for one's mental health just by walking around.

Amidst such scenery, Hyunwoo quietly let out his thoughts.

“It's really well-made and lively.”

It was a strange feeling to actually experience the world I had created and watch my creations come to life.

A strange emotion I had never felt before seeped deep into my heart.

I had roughly looked around the inside of the market now.

‘Shall I start looking?’

Even in the unfamiliar scenery of the market, Hyunwoo hadn't forgotten his purpose.

Hyunwoo headed towards the information guild he had noticed earlier, ‘Lotus’.

Lotus.

In games or novels, an information guild was often depicted as a secret space where one had to speak a password to enter, but that wasn't the case in the world of this ‘Masal’.

In a past meeting to create the initial setting for ‘Masal’, a senior colleague gave an opinion.

—The overall atmosphere is already gloomy… Does the information guild need to be even more somber?

That opinion, which was passed in the meeting, determined the appearance of the information guild, and the information guild that was created was reminiscent of a bank.

I received a numbered ticket at the entrance.

The number was 12.

As I entered, a high and cheerful voice greeted me.

“Customer number 10.”

It felt like a bright and comfortable bank counter.

‘Back then, I thought it was a pretty fresh idea….’

It was a system where you take a number, wait in a chair, and the counter calls customers in order.

Experiencing life in the Demon World firsthand, this kind of atmosphere felt quite out of place.

While waiting, I thought about the information guild.

‘The information guild Lotus, which exists in every region of the Demon World.’

There was no such thing as an information guild that existed only in the Arena.

There was simply an ‘Arena Branch’ of Lotus.

So the information that could be bought and sold here also included outside information.

For Hyunwoo, there was a lot of information at Lotus that was tempting.

‘Should I sell information?’

Obtaining rewards by selling information.

I was slightly tempted, but I soon shook my head.

‘I'll sell later.’

Information held by the weak is no different from a poisoned chalice.

Selling information was on hold until I had acquired a certain level of military power.

If anything, I would use that information myself.

Moreover, the information guild was only plausible on the outside.

It wasn't a very trustworthy group.

‘…Rather, they’re a dangerous bunch.’

They were the kind of guys who wouldn't hesitate to do things like buying and selling Demon World residents alive or taking on assassination requests if it made them money.

While lost in these thoughts, Hyunwoo’s turn came.

“Customer number 12.”

Hearing a gentle voice in the Demon World evoked a bizarre feeling again.

“…Yes.”

Putting the strange feeling behind me, I managed to reply and headed to the counter.

In front of the counter, a phrase containing the ideology of the information guild was written.

—Trust. Reliability. Kindness of Lotus.

‘This is ridiculous, really.’

Although I had set the phrase myself, at this moment, I had to admit my mistake.

This place, which only looked plausible on the outside, was a den of demons itself.

As Hyunwoo approached the counter, the counter staff spoke again.

“Are you customer number 12?”

“Yes. Here.”

When Hyunwoo handed over the numbered ticket, the staff member turned around.

“I will guide you inside.”

Hyunwoo was called and led to a small room inside.

It was a space where one could talk one-on-one.

“You can have your conversation here.”

“Thank you.”

The staff member who guided him left, and inside, another staff member wearing a monocle was sitting.

‘No, he’s a cyclops with only one eye to begin with.’

A resident of the Demon World with only one eye in the middle of his forehead since birth.

‘Should I call the glasses he’s wearing a monocle, or just glasses….’

I faced him while having such useless thoughts.

“Nice to meet you, customer.”

“The Administrator said I could receive Rookie privileges if I visited Lotus.”

Hyunwoo got straight to the point.

This place was a dangerous space for a human like him with nothing.

He had no intention of staying in the information guild for long.

“Ho-oh. So you are the ‘Hyunwoo’ who has newly become a Rookie.”

The cyclops pushed up his glasses and made an interested expression.

“Could you please wait a moment?”

The cyclops left those words and went back out the door he came in.

A moment later, someone else entered through the door he had left.

“Greetings. It is an honor to meet the new Rookie.”

The newly appeared information merchant was a dark elf woman with black skin and pointed ears.

Just before she entered the door, I could see the cyclops bowing outside the door.

It seemed she had a higher rank than the cyclops.

It seemed they were trying to form a connection in advance, considering the potential of a Rookie.

“Have you heard about the special benefits?”

Hyunwoo shook his head.

“No. I have not.”

“Then, I will explain it to you directly.”

The special benefits were different for each Rookie.

What the Arena would give me depended on luck.

The dark elf stood up and placed her hand on the wall next to her.

A moment later, a thick book popped out from the wall with a slight glow.

“Here it is. The special benefit for Mr. Hyunwoo, who has become a Rookie this time.”

“What is the benefit?”

“It is to provide information about the Bronze matches in advance.”

It seemed the Arena didn't want Hyunwoo, the first human Rookie in a long time, to die.

It was a much better benefit than I had expected.

The dark elf continued to flip through the book.

“Is your nickname Hyunwoo?”

“That's right.”

“The next match is… this one.”

When the dark elf placed her hand on the book, a piece of paper floated up into the air.

She handed the floating paper to Hyunwoo.

“Take it. It’s the match information.”

On the paper she handed me, there was only a single line written.

‘Black Whale Survival.’

I even flipped it over to see if there was anything else written on the back, but….

There was nothing.

Only the match name and date were written.

‘15 days from now….’

After pondering for a moment, Hyunwoo looked up at the dark elf.

“Is this all?”

“If you want additional information, you can pay for it. Would you like additional information?”

As if she knew Hyunwoo would say that, the dark elf’s question came right back.

Hyunwoo shook his head.

“No. I will come again if I need it.”

“Yes. Then I will see you again soon.”

Her tone was as if it was natural that Hyunwoo would come again.

Hyunwoo had no intention of coming back.

‘I don’t have the mana stones to pay for the information.’

They were the kind of people who could easily figure out my financial situation.

It was obvious that they were trying to put a leash on me instead of receiving mana stones.

Hyunwoo hurried out of the room.

Until he had built up a certain amount of strength, he had to be cautious about dealing with Lotus.

“Goodbye, customer.”

With the farewell from the counter staff, he completely left the information guild.

Once outside, Hyunwoo fidgeted with the paper in his hand.

And the moment he realized he was completely outside.

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A sigh he had been holding back escaped.

‘Black Whale Survival, of all things….’

Hyunwoo, remembering the match, let out a sigh and then a low curse.

Black Whale Survival.

It was a match where combat in the water was the main objective.

‘No, rather than combat….’

Surviving in the water.

It was a match where just surviving was the best course of action.

From what?

‘The Black Whale.’

Black whale.

A direct translation.

A Demon World monster created with the humpback whale that actually exists on Earth as a motif.

But the only thing similar was its black body.

Unlike the actually gentle humpback whale, it had a nasty personality, befitting a Demon World monster.

On its head and jaw, it had horns instead of the humpback whale's tubercles.

Its hunting method was to kill its prey by ramming it with its horns with swift movements.

A monster with a speed that didn't match its huge body.

The next match was to survive from such a monster.

Hyunwoo recalled the information about the Black Whale and evaluated it calmly.

‘It’s a match with a high probability of death, but if I focus solely on survival, it's not that difficult.’

Hyunwoo knew the habits of the Black Whale well.

He could survive if he just ran away, avoiding its hunting patterns.

If he had been dropped into the Black Whale Survival without knowing anything, he might have just run away.

‘But now I have time to prepare.’

The situation changed as I learned about the match in advance.

My current concern was not survival, but something else.

What if.

‘What if I go beyond survival and hunt the Black Whale?’

The impact would be incomparably greater than when I set a new record in the Trap Time Attack.

The more I became a noteworthy gladiator in the Arena, the more my chances of survival would increase dramatically.

‘Can I… catch the Black Whale?’

I couldn't be sure of a successful hunt.

But I didn't think it was entirely impossible.

‘If luck is on my side….’

It was entirely possible if I could satisfy a few conditions for catching the Black Whale.

After pondering for a moment, Hyunwoo came to a conclusion.

‘Let’s do it.’

Hunting the Black Whale.

The preparation process for hunting it, not just surviving.

Hyunwoo quickened his pace, thinking about the necessary preparations.