Return of the Frozen Player

“Get up.”

Seo Jun-Ho looked up and slowly stood up upon hearing Reiji’s words.

Reiji walked around Seo Jun-Ho as if she were a trainer examining her students and said, “How many days has it been since you got here?”

“Ten days.”

“...Well. You’ve improved somewhat. It’s probably because you have an excellent teacher.”

“Does that mean…” Seo Jun-Ho trailed off, sounding expectant.

Reiji nodded and said, “You’re starting to get the hang of hiding your claws, so let’s end your training here.”

“Thank you so much! But…” Seo Jun-Ho trailed off. He had realized something while he was learning how to suppress the enormous energy he was emitting as a creature of the Star Destruction Stage.

“Do you think I’ll be okay with this? I’m not capable of completely hiding my power yet.”

“You really do have high hopes, don’t you? You already want to learn how to fly when you’ve just learned how to crawl?”

“Pardon?”

“What do you think I’m about to say to you?”

“...Don’t be cocky?”

“I’m glad you know. It’s only been a few days since you reached the Star Destruction Stage, and you’re already thinking of hiding your power completely. How cheeky. Only those on the cusp of reaching the Transcendent Stage could do such a thing.”

“Oh, I see.”

‘I didn’t know that it would be that difficult. I must have looked very arrogant then.’

Seo Jun-Ho nodded with a disappointed look.

“I understand. Still, I learned a lot, and it’s all thanks to you.”

“That’s good to know. Here, take this.”

Reiji threw something toward Seo Jun-Ho.

Seo Jun-Ho quickly snatched it out of mid-air and found that it was a small ring.

“What is this ring?”

“Wear it, and you’ll find out”

Seo Jun-Ho put the ring on his middle finger, and his eyes widened.

“Huh? Wait. This is…”

“What do you think? It’s barely noticeable, isn’t it?” Reiji grinned.

Just like she said, Seo Jun-Ho’s power as a Star Destruction Stage creature vanished the moment he put on the ring. However, it had a glaring disadvantage; it was also acting as a limiter for his magic. He could only wield a portion of his magic.

“Is this a gift?” he asked.

“Take it. I don’t need it anymore.”

“Thank you, but—no, never mind.”

‘I would have saved at least ten days if she had given this to me earlier…’

Reiji lifted an eyebrow after seeing through Seo Jun-Ho’s thoughts.

“You ungrateful bastard. I saved you from drowning, but you’re asking me to pay for your medical fees as well?”

“No, that’s not what I mean. It’s just…”

“A mere ring isn’t enough to contain all that power in you. What are you going to do if your uncompressed power destroys that ring?”

“You are absolutely right.” Seo Jun-Ho hurriedly nodded and apologized with a deep bow. “It’s not good to completely rely on external tools.”

“Fuck off now, you’re pissing me off.”

“Thank you. Really…”

“I told you to fuck off. You want more knuckle sandwiches?”

“I-I’m leaving, but the exit—”

Reiji threw an annoyed look at Seo Jun-Ho before interrupting him with a wave of her hand.

Seo Jun-Ho disappeared into thin air.

Left alone in the training ground, Reiji lit her cigarette.

“Is it really going to be okay?” said Gray as he emerged from a rift in space.

“What are you talking about?” asked Reiji.

“The ring you gave Player Seo Jun-Ho. Wasn’t that Dark Leap—ranked 899th in the Weapon Rankings?”

“It is.”

“The higher-ups will scold you for what you’ve done; they’ll think that you’ve done too much for him. They still frown at the mention of your name, Miss Reiji. It seems that they’re still holding a grudge from the Hole of Repentance incident,” said Gray.

“Those damned boomers. We’re about to die, so how come they’re still being a stickler for the rules?” Reiji clicked her tongue. She breathed out a white mist before saying, “I will be fine. Don’t worry because it wasn’t for free.”

“What do you mean?”

“It was more like a trade, but I earned more than he did.”

Gray tilted his head out of curiosity at Reiji’s confident remark and asked, “Did Player Seo Jun-Ho have something so valuable that it was worth trading with Dark Leap?”

“He did.”

Snap!

Reiji snapped her fingers, and an unassuming sword on the couch stood up.

“What do you think? I earned more, right?”

“But… isn’t that Helic’s holy relic? I thought she told Player Seo Jun-Ho to collect it and return it to her.”

“And what is she gonna do about it? I own it now, but don’t worry, I’ll give it back to her later.”

Reiji had basically avoided being scolded by the higher-ups by trading Dark Leap for Helic’s Holy Sword.

“I think Helic will get in trouble for what you’ve done, Miss.Reiji.”

“So what?” Reiji smiled as if that was none of her business. “I don’t care as long as I don’t get in trouble.”

***

Seo Jun-Ho hesitated in the Dimensional Elevator. He had been on the 9th Floor, but he hadn’t gone there voluntarily. This was the first time he would press the button for the 9th Floor himself.

“Are you nervous?”

“To be honest, yeah. I’m pretty nervous.”

The Frost Queen’s arms were crossed in front of her chest, and she was leaning against the elevator. She smiled upon hearing Seo Jun-Ho’s response.

“Do not be afraid. You’ve grown up enough, and… the same is true of myself.”

The Frost Queen’s strength had grown beyond imagination after she had become one with the 8th Floor’s Frost Queen. In fact, the Frost Queen’s massive growth was the biggest reason Seo Jun-Ho had decided to clear the 9th Floor.

“You won’t need me for a while, right?”

“It might be best to keep a low profile.”

Reiji said that there were quite a few demons capable of seeing Spirits on the 9th Floor, and the demons would definitely get suspicious of him the moment they noticed that he had a Spirit.

The Frost Queen nodded and said, “All right. I will be resting for a while, then. Summon me when you’re in danger.”

“Take a good rest. I’ll do my best so that I won’t have to summon you.”

Seo Jun-Ho recalled the Frost Queen, and she dissipated into innumerable light particles, leaving Seo Jun-Ho all by himself.

- I’m with you, Partner.

“...”

‘Right. I have Intuition with me.’ Seo Jun-Ho smiled slightly and finally pressed the button for the 9th Floor.

[You’ve arrived on the 9th Floor.]

Seo Jun-Ho had already visited the 9th Floor, so the Bringer of Spring title didn’t activate. ‘It doesn’t matter. Pioneer is active because the Heavenly Demon is dead.’

Pioneer (S) would bestow him an additional two hundred and fifty stat points as long as he had the highest level among the Players. Seo Jun-Ho had to be diligent and hard-working, as he wasn’t the only Player who was grinding throughout the universe.

“...The air is so murky here.”

Seo Jun-Ho stepped out of the elevator, and a red wilderness filled his eyes.

‘Where should I go?’

Seo Jun-Ho contemplated for a while and asked, “Intuition. Which direction should I go?”

- Go south.

“All right.”

The destination was decided at Keen Intuition’s answer.

‘Conquering the 9th Floor starts from the south.’

***

The gatekeeper looked up at the sky. He had been working as the gatekeeper of this city for many decades now, and he often looked up at the sky to spend time whenever he was bored.

“The skies are clear. No wonder we are getting so many tourists,” he muttered.

The Underworld’s skies were generally cloudy, so tourists would flock to territories where the skies were clear. In fact, two large merchant groups had already arrived at the city this morning.

‘Ah, speak of the demons. There’s another one coming.’ The gatekeeper saw a man approaching from the far end of the red wilderness. The gatekeeper squinted his eyes and tilted his head. ‘He’s not riding on anything, and he doesn’t have any luggage.’

This was very strange and unusual. The nearest city from the city of Verman was at least fifteen days away using a carriage.

“Halt,” said the gatekeeper. Identify yourself and tell me the purpose of your visit—”

The gatekeeper shut his mouth upon making eye contact with the man whose smooth hair came all the way down to his waist. The man’s hair was pitch-black in color, looking as if it were made out of darkness itself.

The quick-witted gatekeeper fell into deep contemplation. ‘Damn it. What’s going on?’

The man had come from the wilderness, but his clothes were clean with nary a sign of dust or dirt. However, a horn wasn’t sticking out of his head, aside from a tiny bump on his forehead. In other words, the man was barely a Low demon.

‘But why… why can’t I feel his energy at all?’

The gatekeeper’s instincts were screaming at him, and he quickly bowed. “My apologies, sir. You do not have to tell me the purpose of your visit. Shall I let the lord know that you’ve come here to visit?”

“No, I will only stay here for a few days,” said the man. He was fluent in the common language of demons, and his accent was both refined and elegant. The gatekeeper was finally convinced that the man couldn’t possibly be a lowly demon from the outskirts.

He had to be at least a High demon working in the capital.

‘I knew it! Perhaps he’s a Noble hiding his strength.’

The gatekeeper recalled the rumors about how High and Noble demons would often hide their strength and horns for fun while traveling around the Underworld.

The gatekeeper let out a sigh of relief. It was a good thing that he hadn’t made things difficult for the man in front of him.

“P-please go on in,” he stammered.

The man nodded once and walked into the city. His eyes scanned the streets.

“...”

‘I thought things would be a lot different here since this is a city of demons, but it’s not too different compared to the cities of humans.’

The man could feel the demons’ piercing gazes.

Perhaps it was all because he was an outsider.

‘I need more information,’ thought the man—Seo Jun-Ho—as he casually walked down the streets. Seo Jun-Ho didn’t have that much information about the Underworld.

The reason he was fluent in the common language of demons, as well as how he discovered Verman, was all thanks to Mellis, the High demon he had encountered at the Arcade Center.

‘His memories aren’t good enough. I need more information, and it has to be the latest ones.’ Seo Jun-Ho had chosen Verman to get more information, as it was the easiest city to extract information. ‘Was it that way?’

Seo Jun-Ho walked down the streets according to Mellis’ memory and headed for the largest and highest building in the city.

“Stop right there.”

The gatekeeper stopped Seo Jun-Ho.

He looked much stricter than the gatekeeper of the city gates.

He scanned Seo Jun-Ho from head to toe and asked, “I’ve never seen you around here before. Are you a Noble from another city?”

“No.”

“Hmm. So you’re just an ordinary visitor. What’s the purpose of your visit?”

“I’ve come to see the lord.”

“...” The gatekeeper went silent.

He hesitated because Seo Jun-Ho was strangely confident.

“Are you an acquaintance of the lord?”

“No, but I brought news that must be delivered to him in person,” said Seo Jun-Ho. “Tell him that I’ve come bearing Mellis’ last will.”

“Mr. Mellis’ last will?”

The gatekeeper’s eyes widened. Mellis was the pride of Verman. He had become a High demon in just a few years, and he had also become one of the top 3000 demons in the Underworld.

The Lord of Verman treated Mellis as if the latter were his younger brother, even though they weren’t related by blood.

‘The lord was upset that Mellis had stopped communicating with him the moment the latter left for the capital. It is unusual that he left a will for the lord.’

The gatekeeper hurriedly said, “C-come in—no, please come in.”

Seo Jun-Ho was guided to the parlor, and it didn’t take him that long to see a man from Mellis’ memories. The man had come with a few of his subordinates.

“Oh, wow. Are you the one who came to deliver Mellis’ last will?”

“That’s me.”

“...Ha, haha.”

Seo Jun-Ho’s informal speech bothered the lord, but he simply laughed it off as he sat in front of Seo Jun-Ho. “It’s been a while since I heard the news of Mellis’ death, so I’m surprised that you’ve come this late to deliver his will.

”Anyway, go ahead and tell me. I am the lord of this city.”

“All right.”

Seo Jun-Ho said the lines he had prepared in advance.

“Thank you for taking good care of me when I was young.”

“Haha, that guy. I didn’t really do much for him…”

“You truly are a humble man, my lord. It is no wonder Mr. Mellis left you a last will.”

“It’s such a great honor to serve you, my lord.”

“Oh, stop it. You are making me blush in front of a guest.”

The lord shook his hand to the subordinates’ flattery and looked at Seo Jun-Ho.

“And? And what else did he say?”

Seo Jun-Ho saw greed in the lord’s eyes. Perhaps because he was the lord of such a remote city, but he seemed to have high expectations for what Mellis had left for him. It wasn’t really strange; Mellis was a High demon, after all.

However, Seo Jun-Ho simply shrugged. “That’s all.”

“...What?”

“That was all. He said thank you for taking good care of me when I was young. Stay healthy. That’s it.”

“...” The lord’s smile abruptly vanished. His subordinates saw the displeasure on their lord’s face, and they promptly mustered their demonic energy.

“Sigh.”

The lord leaned against his chair and glared at Seo Jun-Ho.

“Did you waste my precious time to speak bullshit to me?”

“You didn’t seem that busy. You came here running in less than a minute.”

“Tsk!” The lord’s face turned ugly. He stood up and ordered his subordinates.

“Cut off his tongue, beat him to your heart’s content, and kick him out. What a fucking lunatic.”

“Mellis will be sad.”

“...What?” asked the lord, seemingly baffled.

Seo Jun-Ho took a sip of the unknown bitter tea and murmured. “He told you to stay healthy, but you’re trying to get yourself killed."

“You crazy bastard! Your horns are still growing; how dare you speak to me like that!” screamed the lord.

The lord’s subordinates rushed at Seo Jun-Ho with fierce looks as Seo Jun-Ho slowly took off the ring on his middle finger.