The Final Boss Has Returned 176

Chapter 176

“As you know, a significant variable has occurred, making it inevitable to modify the plan.”

I didn’t specifically mention that significant variable.

Because I thought Shin Ha-yeon-ssi would already know.

“Modification, you say? In what direction?”

Shin Ha-yeon-ssi asked me.

I closed my mouth after hearing her question.

A significant variable.

The real ending reward is the management rights of Miracle Entertainment!

The moment I heard that, I realized.

The war in Ard World will no longer be a pastime, but a brutal battlefield where real powers engage in a bloody struggle.

‘Of course, only three users, including myself, have the minimum qualifications to see the ending.’

The name of one person came to mind.

Sword Emperor Argen.

He was the user who had just been reported to have reached EX rank.

I recalled the information I knew about him.

The rumor that he has been carrying out a Mythical grade quest for a long time was already widespread.

Naturally, I had also heard the rumor and asked Shin Ha-yeon-ssi to determine its truth.

And the result was surprisingly true.

Argen, that bastard had been carrying out a Mythical grade quest for a long time.

Since I already knew that, I wasn’t surprised that Argen had reached EX rank.

It was a natural result if he had completed the Mythical grade quest.

Anyway, as an EX rank myself, I knew very well the difference between EX rank and SSS rank, the so-called top rankers and over-rankers.

EX rank is the minimum qualification to discuss the hegemony and mandate of heaven in Ard World.

The established powers in reality know this very well, so they are requesting cooperation or investment in Jeil New Media regardless of official or unofficial channels.

It would be the same for Argen, and it was clear that he would soon leave Five Eyes and try to establish an independent force.

Sword Emperor Argen.

He was a petty person with a heavy backside, but he was a person with a fair amount of greed and ambition.

There was no way a greedy bastard like him would miss the golden opportunity of the division of the Lightwing Guild.

Anyway, the important fact now was that countless large corporations and external forces were desperate to intervene in the war in Ard World.

Perhaps if I reached out now, they would provide me with unimaginable support.

‘But at this point, support from external forces would be good in the short term, but in the long term, it would be nothing more than a poisoned chalice.’

I looked at Shin Ha-yeon-ssi and thought this.

Large corporations and external forces.

Although their power in the real world was truly great, it was not greater than the public sentiment of the users.

Because, in the end, it was the countless ordinary users who moved Ard World.

I knew better than anyone else how powerful the united force of ordinary users, the people power, could be, as I had experienced it enough in the previous game.

The reason why I was eventually defeated by Eugene in the previous game was only one.

The hearts of the users had left me.

That’s why, since my return, I have consistently moved in a direction to gain the public sentiment of the users.

‘Now that the fact that the one who unifies Ard World will have the management rights of Miracle Entertainment is known to the world, if I receive cooperation or support from a large corporation, I will surely be branded as their puppet.’

Eugene.

I knew the ideals he pursued better than anyone else.

The freedom of users and the purity of Ard World.

That ideal was nothing less than the greatest weapon in the current fight where the fate of Ard World and the management rights of Miracle Entertainment were at stake.

The frame that we are fighting for freedom and purity, whether it is true or not, was good for garnering the support of the users and also perfect for criticizing other groups that receive support from large corporations.

We stood up for freedom, but you are nothing more than puppets of large corporations.

If large corporations take over Ard World, not only the current Ard World but also the freedom of users will disappear!

If the frame is set up that way, it was only a matter of time before public opinion returned to Eugene’s grasp.

It was like saying that the stage I had painstakingly built was in danger of collapsing again.

Support from large corporations and external forces is a poisoned chalice.

That was the reason why I evaluated it that way.

If I receive support from a large corporation, I might be comfortable right now.

But in the end, I wouldn’t be able to shake off the stigma of being a puppet of a large corporation, a monster born of capitalism, and public sentiment would return to Eugene.

If public sentiment turned that way, even if the grandfather of the large corporation returned, the situation could not be reversed.

Because Ard World was, after all, a world created by ordinary users.

And I would never, ever see that happen, even if dirt got into my eyes.

I couldn’t chase away the public sentiment with my own hands after experiencing the power and importance of it in the previous game.

Eugene.

There was no need for me to do that bastard a favor.

‘Therefore, the cooperation with Shin Ha-yeon-ssi…… must be outwardly settled here.’

For a successful revenge against Eugene, and to become the final victor of Phase 3.

The cooperative relationship with Shin Ha-yeon-ssi had to be outwardly settled here.

Jeil Group was a large corporation after all, and it was in a perfect position for Eugene’s side to frame them as slaves of a large corporation.

Therefore, when judged rationally, severing ties with Jeil Group was a prerequisite that should naturally be addressed for ultimate victory, and this was the starting point of the ‘countermeasure’ I had in mind.

But when I tried to tell Shin Ha-yeon-ssi, my lips wouldn’t move properly.

“Why did you suddenly become silent? And your expression too, is something bothering you?”

Shin Ha-yeon-ssi looked at me and spoke with a worried expression and voice.

I looked at Shin Ha-yeon-ssi and bit my lip.

I had always thought that I had treated all human relationships, except for my family, in a calculating way.

Even the core executives of the Iron Blood Alliance that I led in the previous game, I never had a close personal relationship with them.

But now, there was the only other person in front of me who was invading the boundaries of my heart that I had created.

Shin Ha-yeon-ssi.

The de facto ruler of Jeil Group, the sponsor who offered to sponsor me when I returned, and at the same time, the person who had the same goal as me, a ‘blood alliance’ relationship as she put it, and a lover.

The time I spent with her after my return, short if short and long if long, was never meaningless.

‘To be swayed by such affection.’

I pressed my temples.

Yes.

I was clearly being swayed by affection now.

Like Eugene, the affection that I had unknowingly built in my relationship with Shin Ha-yeon-ssi was making me hesitate now.

I closed and opened my eyes and spoke slowly.

“My goal is Eugene’s destruction.”

“I know.”

“And your goal is dominance in the new media market. But if we continue like this, neither of us will be able to achieve it.”

I said in a heavy voice.

I could feel my heart constantly wavering.

But I pulled myself together.

I couldn’t ruin the great cause by being swayed by affection.

Eugene.

Didn’t I vow to destroy that bastard on the day I disembarked from the deep-sea fishing vessel and came down to Korea!

I could still vividly feel the horrible sights and experiences of the deep-sea fishing vessel when I closed my eyes.

“Why, do you think so?”

Shin Ha-yeon-ssi’s voice was heard.

I answered her question.

“……The fate of Ard World is determined by the public sentiment of the users. And now, there is no user who doesn’t know that the ending of Ard Saga Second is directly related to the management rights of Miracle Entertainment, that is, the operation of Ard World. In such a situation…… the value that users will most support will surely be the purity of Ard World and the freedom of users that Eugene advocates.”

I stammered and slowly continued my answer in a heavy tone, avoiding Shin Ha-yeon-ssi’s gaze.

“On the other hand, those who receive external support…… will clearly be positioned as the axis of evil in contrast to Eugene, slaves of capital, and furthermore, enemies of the users. In such a situation…… There’s no way I can beat that bastard. At best, it will only be a repeat of the same defeat as the previous game.”

My voice, as I spoke, was already trembling.

“So, in order to win, now, you and I……”

But I couldn’t back down here.

I had no intention of walking the path of certain defeat, swayed by affection.

So, the moment I was about to continue my final answer.

I felt a warm body temperature on my trembling right hand.

Shin Ha-yeon-ssi, she had taken my hand.

“You mean we need to break up…… superficially for a while?”

Shin Ha-yeon-ssi’s faint voice was heard.

I turned my head.

And there was Shin Ha-yeon-ssi’s face, her lips trembling.

“Yes. Superficially, at least.”

I nodded at her words.

At least superficially, the relationship between me and her, no, the relationship between Jeil Group and Drakan, needed to be perceived by the public as severed.

Only then would I be able to stand on the same stage as Eugene.

Like Eugene, I too could abandon even the support of large corporations for the sake of ordinary users, for the sake of Ard World.

If so, the support of the users would continue to be maintained, and the public sentiment of the users would not be drawn to Eugene.

After hearing my words, Shin Ha-yeon-ssi said.

“Indeed…… Drakan-nim is right. If we continue like this, the public sentiment of the users that we have painstakingly built will leave us, and in the end, we will surely be left with nothing to hold onto. Thinking rationally, doing as Drakan-nim says is the right answer.”

Her voice, as she spoke, was trembling deeply for the first time.

“……But, even though I know the answer, even though I know it’s not a real breakup, it’s the first time I don’t want to do it.”

Shin Ha-yeon-ssi’s hand tightly gripped my right hand.

Knowing the answer, yet not wanting to do it.

I smiled bitterly, as if I understood her feelings.

I didn’t know how I had come to have feelings for her.

“But there’s no other way to win. And after I defeat that bastard…… I promise I’ll definitely come back to you.”

I told her in a trembling voice.

I will definitely come back.

That was the truth I had confided in her.

Shin Ha-yeon-ssi’s eyes widened at my words, and then a smile appeared on her lips.

It was a smile that sprang from joy, unlike the bitter smiles she had shown before.