Chapter 201

I checked his info by activating Eye of Perception.

[Player]

Name: Pietro

Age: 31

Level: 33

Class: Information Merchant

Guardian: Merchant of Venice

Innate ability: [Forced Trade]

State: Ambition / Desire / Enterprising

Disposition: Sincere / Hard-working / Rash

Summary:

Information Merchant Recruiting an Archer

Narcissist Brimming with Confidence

The disposition/state/summary only show the most representative and can change according to the situation.

Because Eye of Perception's proficiency is not high enough, viewing more detailed information is impossible.

Pietro. Just like in the past, he was contracted to the Merchant of Venice, and just as his summary showed, he was a famed narcissist. Being a narcissist wasn't necessarily a bad thing—it just meant he loved and valued himself. Him being a narcissist or not didn't have much to do with me, anyway. The summary that mattered to me was 'Information Merchant Recruiting an Archer'.

'Ah.'

I recalled the video Sunhwa had shown me, the one with about 100,000 views. Subtracting the overseas views and duplicate views, there had to be at least a few thousand people in Italy who had seen it. Apparently, Pietro had seen it, too.

'I think he's here to recruit me, thinking I'm an archer.'

Why?

'What was it called again? The Dewinged Angel Statue Gate?'

I knew most of the events that happened in Korea, but unless they were major events like the Battle of the Maldives, I was relatively uninformed about foreign matters. Even so, I knew the gist of the 'Dewinged Angel Statue Gate'.

'A gate archers from all over the world gathered to challenge… and where at least half of them perished.'

When I combed through my memories, I think I remembered that happening in Italy.

"Seeing as you know my name, you appear to have done your research."

"I apologize if that has offended you."

Were all Italian people good looking? Vela was a given, but even the crossdressing Pedro was handsome, and so was Pietro. He was sporting a not-very-tidy bushy beard, but even that added to his charm. How could I describe it? Kinda like a handsome hobo?

"It's alright. It's natural you would be curious about a Korean archer."

"..."

State: Slight Surprise / Suspicion

He seemed to be curious as to how I knew what he was after.

"It looks like you looked into me as an archer."

The info merchant Pietro was still only level 33, a level you really couldn't expect too much from. He would grow more later on.

"I looked into you as an archer with a special power. Looking at your Playing, you appear to possess close-ranged martial arts… but in reality, you seem closer to a sovereign."

Oho, he was still pretty impressive. We weren't even from the same country, but he was able to find this much intel on a nameless Player in a different land. The guy was indeed a cut above the rest.

"You've looked into me quite comprehensively. Then you must know about my talent plate result as well?"

"Yes. I know you received a [No Talent] assessment."

Goodness, he had gathered quite a lot of intel on me. It wasn't special info, but still, extracting such detail on an individual from another country was no easy feat.

"But why are you trying to recruit me?"

"...I haven't said anything about that yet."

A war was not fought only with swords. When fighting a glib talker, you had to fight with words, and when fighting an information merchant, you had to fight with info.

With an intentional smile, I said, "Looks like you didn't know my class also deals with info."

That wasn't always in my class description, but I decided to include it from now on.

"..."

Pietro was taken aback. It was natural, since my class wasn't about handling information. I just knew a lot of info. You could call it a regressor perk.

"I wasn't able to find that out."

"You're gathering archers all over the world, yes? To clear a gate."

"...That's correct."

"The name of that gate… I'm not 100% sure, but I have a feeling it's the Dewinged Angel Statue Gate."

"..."

The information merchant stared at me, stunned. He didn't intentionally try to hide his expression.

"Could it be that you're not an archer, a martial artist, or a sovereign, but an information merchant?"

"No, that's not it."

"Then what are you?"

"Is that important to you?"

After a moment of thought, Pietro shook his head. "It's not."

"I thought so. What's important to you is my ability as an archer."

I was dominating this conversation. Unfortunately for Pietro, I had the upper hand when it came to information. From the very moment my information exceeded that of an information merchant, he was no match for me.

"I'll cut to the chase," I said. "I recommend not going into the Dewinged Angel Statue Gate."

In the past, nearly half of the archers died without anything to show for it. All the survivors were united in what they said afterwards—that they would never, ever go back in.

"How come?"

"The risk is too great, and there's nothing to gain from it."

"May I ask what evidence you are basing your judgment on?"

I smiled wide. "If the information merchant Pietro wants information, he should make a trade with information of his own. Is it okay for you to panhandle?"

"..."

Pietro's eyes widened. He didn't particularly try to hide his expression, instead naively expressing his surprise.

"Did I… ever tell you my name?"

I shrugged. "Like I said, I also handle information."

"Astonishing. Truly astonishing. To think you already knew about me. Haha. Hahaha."

As I watched Pietro giving a stupefied laugh, I offered him a word of advice.

"The Merchant of Venice is watching."

Was this situation really one that the Merchant of Venice would like? No. The initiative was overwhelmingly on my side. Pietro had to exert himself as an information merchant, so as to not shame himself. Because the Merchant of Venice's favorite wasn't me, but him.

"It doesn't matter. The current me can't win against you anyway. The information you possess far outstrips the information I possess."

"..."

"It's fine. Sometimes, it's better to simply admit defeat."

That made sense. I didn't have a 100% understanding of the Merchant of Venice. It could be that the Merchant of Venice actually liked Pietro's attitude. After all, each Guardian's personality was different.

"In any case, allow me to propose a trade, as you recommended."

"Go ahead."

"If you tell me why the Dewinged Angel Statue Gate is dangerous, I will tell you about the man you are looking for, Salvatore."

Ara. He had dug up that much? He was still rough around the edges, but he was indeed a future Ranker.

"Very well."

The deal was established.

"I have special eyes." It probably wasn't totally unknown news to Pietro, since I myself had mentioned my 'special eyes' several times. "They possess an [Authority of Intuition]."

Intuition. The dictionary definition was the ability to understand something without the need for one's senses, experience, association, judgment, or inference.

"In other words, I can just tell by looking."

"So the reliability of the information drops sharply. Since it's intuition."

I thought he would say that. I showed him another of my cards.

"It's just like how I can simply see that you have an innate ability called [Forced Trade]."

"..."

Pietro flinched. He was speechless for a long time. He finally opened his mouth.

"It appears that 'intuition' is certainly a thing."

"As you can see."

I could even read his level, but I didn't tell him that much.

"Very well. I will give you the information about Salvatore."

Our conversation went on longer than I expected. Meeting Pietro was an extremely good thing for me, since I was able to find out Salvatore's identity even before CEO Song investigated for me. After a long conversation, we shook hands.

"I'll leave it to you."

Cheon Sooji was extremely annoyed. People kept calling out to her wherever she went, and men of all ages, young and old, resorted to any means to talk to her, hoping to get close.

'Why are these damn Italians so annoying?'

She would have liked to stick a poisoned needle into each of their clueless foreheads, but she held back. This was a foreign server, and she at least knew it wasn't a good idea to make a ruckus here.

"Yeah, fuck off. I'm not interested."

"I said, fuck off."

"I don't like you guys."

She walked like a haughty, untouchable rose. No matter how she looked at it, there weren't any guys quite like Kim Hyukjin, a man who wasn't like these bees that were swarming her, but a flower she wanted to approach. Thinking about him made her heart pound. This kind of feeling, was it a first for her?

"Mr. Kim Hyukjin!"

Her footsteps quickened. An annoying kid was clinging to Hyukjin—the genius tank, Kim Sunhwa. As Hyukjin's legal sister, she was a truly irritating pest, a girl who interfered every time Sooji tried to get close to Hyukjin. However, she kept a smile on her face.

'If you want to kill the general, you have to shoot the horse.'

Whether she liked Kim Sunhwa or not, Sunhwa was Hyukjin's little sister, and if Sooji wanted a chance with Hyukjin, she had to treat her well.

"You're here too, Sunhwa? You're getting prettier with every passing day."

If the guild members of Taeguk Shield were to see her right now, they would probably be rubbing their eyes. After all, Sooji was a thorny rose who never showed such a tender side.

The Poison Witch pulled out fried chicken from her Inventory, putting a faint smile on her lips.

"Here, a gift."

She tempted the kid with chicken, then went to talk business with Kim Hyukjin.

"CEO Song sent me."

"Did he?"

"Yes. I'm bringing information on Salvatore, but… Salvatore is…"

"An alias, right?"

"...Huh? You already knew?" Sooji stealthily went up to Hyukjin's side. "I hear you're going to Pompeii on this trip."

"..."

"Are you perhaps in need of my assistance?"

It would be great if Cheon Sooji accompanied them, since having Rot Water on tap was very handy for hunting Predator Trees.

"Do you happen to have any Rot Water with you?"

"Yes, of course. I made it in advance."

Cheon Sooji sidled a little closer to him, almost close enough for their shoulders and arms to touch. A distance close enough for some stealthy skinship.

"But I won't just give it to you for free. I'm not a pushover."

"Then don't, it's fine."

Hyukjin coldly turned around. Rot Water was crucial in the past, but not anymore. Their levels were way higher than back then, and he was confident he could hunt the Predator Trees no problem. It was nice to have Rot Water, but it was perfectly fine to go without.

"Wait, hold up! Here. I'll give it to you. I can just give it to you, right?"

"Thank you."

"..."

Sooji looked at him sulkily before opening her mouth. "When will you come have a drink with me?"

"When the opportunity comes."

"Opportunities don't come, they're made."

"I'm busy."

"Even in the night, when you're alone?"

"I'm very busy."

Why was this lady so impatient to get a piece of him, really?

Cheon Sooji unconsciously licked her lips. She liked this feeling. It really had been such a long time since she met a man who didn't cling desperately to her, a man who became harder to approach the closer she got. She liked him so much, she nearly forgot herself in excitement.

"You're as charming as ever."

As he watched, Choi Sung-gu could no longer repress his bafflement. 'That's charming?'

What part of that was charming?

'It's obvious he doesn't like her.'

Sung-gu really couldn't wrap his mind around why this lady saw that as charming. What did a woman as beautiful and capable as Cheon Sooji lack, that she was going this far?

'Though it's true Hyukjin's a massive monster.'

Even so, he couldn't understand why such a beautiful woman was so desperate, especially when she was the Black Rose of Taeguk Shield, Cheon Sooji.

'Haah, whatever.'

He had nothing to do with it. In the end, Hyukjin got Rot Water from Sooji and refused her desire to Play together. Sung-gu could only feel admiration that wasn't quite admiration as he watched.

'A woman so beautiful was asking that earnestly, but he rejected her just like that… You gotta wonder sometimes if this dude is really a man.'

* * *

Transportation was handled via the car Vela brought. For reference, Vela was a beginner driver, and he was nervous the entire drive.

Clutching the steering wheel with both hands, he said, "Don't worry. We won't die even if we crash! Trust me! We've even got a tank here, don't we?"

We finally reached the ancient ruins, Pompeii. And when we arrived, Pedro was waiting for us.

"I heard you were looking for me, Hyukjin."

"Yes, that's right."

"Since when have you been in contact with the Black Butterfly Guild? Are you not a Korean native?"

The Black Butterfly. It was the name of the guild run by Pietro. Pietro was definitely doing his job well, it seemed.

"I sort of just ran into them. We met for the first time today."

There was a man in his mid-20s standing next to Pedro.

'Found you.'

The Wargod Salvatore.

That man was here. The name Salvatore was an alias, a fake name.

His real name was Chiellini, but that little detail wasn't important. In any case, Chiellini, the Salvatore I remembered, was indeed acquainted with Vela.

Vela shot a glare.

"Why are you here?"

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