Return of the Frozen Player - Chapter 72
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Roman Holiday (4)
âHey! Anna!â Torres turned to Anna as he watched Marco run toward them.
âDo you know him?â
ââŠHeâs the leader of the family I was part of.â Anna stared at the ground, her voice devoid of life.
âTsk, itâs an important day.â He looked around, and they slipped into an alley.
âAnna! Anna!â Marco smiled brightly as he approached them. Torres blinked.
âWho are you and why are you bothering our Anna?â
âH-hello! Iâm Marco. Iâm Annaâs older brotherâŠâ
âAh, so youâre Marco? Iâve heard a lot about you. Isnât that right, Anna?â
ââŠâŠâ Anna didnât look up from the ground.
ââŠShe seems a little strange. Is she sick?â Marco asked, worried. Torres patted Annaâs shoulder.
âOf course not. Annaâs just tired because she just woke up. Isnât that right?â
âYes.â
âHaha. Anna, itâs been a while since youâve seen your family, so you should greet him with a smile.â
âA smileâŠâ Her empty eyes suddenly filled with life. She grabbed Marcoâs hands and jumped up and down as if nothing had happened. âKyaa! Marco-oppa! How long has it been? Two months?â
âYeah, howâve you been?â Marco smiled as he saw the Anna that he knew return.
âYup! Paradise is great. The teachers are really nice and the food is really yummy! Look at my clothes!â
âI have eyes, you know! It looks really new. Iâm glad youâre doing well.â His doubt started to fade away.
âAre Max and the others doing okay? Does Pierre still cry a lot?â
âItâs the same as always. Pierre cries a lot because he misses you.â
âGeez, that crybaby⊠If only I could come out more often, I could see them.â
Marco shook his head. âNo. Weâre happy as long as youâre happy. Iâll tell the kids that youâre doing well.â
âYes, please.â
Torres cut off their conversation. âMarco, did you tell your siblings that youâre coming here?â
âHuh? No. Theyâre still sleeping.â
ââŠReally?â Torresâs lip curled upward. He held out his hand to Marco. âThenâŠâ
âOh, you were here!â
Torres quickly pulled his hand away. He wrinkled his nose as he saw the man.
Sunglasses with a mask and cap? The strange man walked over to them, holding an umbrella.
âAt least tell me where youâre going. Whyâd you run off alone?â
âOh⊠sorry. I was just excited to see Anna.â
Torres cut in, âAnd you areâŠ?â
âOh, Iâm a tourist. My nameâs Sonny. I hired this guy to be my local guide.â
âSonny⊠I see. My name is Torres.â
Seo Jun-ho blinked. He has guts. Heâs telling me his real name. That probably meant that he was confident he wouldnât get caught.
Seo Jun-ho held out his hand. âNice to meet you, Torres.â
âYes, itâs nice to meet you, Mr. Sonny.â As Torres shook his hand, he looked down and back up at Seo Jun-ho. âAre you a player? Youâve got quite a grip.â
âWow, how did you know? Thatâs right. Iâm actually level 27.â Seo Jun-ho puffed out his chest as if he were boasting.
âI see. You must be an excellent player.â
âYeah, people call me a genius all the time⊠I probably am.â
âAh⊠I see.â Torres smiled, but he was snorting on the inside. Heâd already made his evaluation.
So heâs level 27⊠I can tell. He could kill him with one finger.
âOh, Marco. Is this the person from Paradise?â Seo Jun-ho asked, baiting his attention.
âYeah. Annaâs doing really well there. Itâs a great place.â
ââŠWait, didnât you say youâre a tourist? How do you know about Paradise?â Torres was smiling, but there was suspicion in his eyes.
âI heard from this guy. Itâs a long story, is that alright?â
âPlease, go ahead.â
Seo Jun-ho grinned. âWas it fifteen years ago? My one and only little brother⊠Oh, heâs two years younger than me, but he was a little taller. I was stronger, though, so I would always win when we wrestledâŠâ
âExcuse me, can you summarize it?â Torres was getting annoyed at his rambling.
âTsk. I was just getting to the good part⊠Anyways, I believe that my brother is at Paradise.â
âHe shouldnât be. We donât have any adult men at the moment.â
âProbably, but he wouldâve been there in the past. You have records, right? I want to take a look.â
ââŠâŠâ They didnât. All the children that went to the orphanage either died or became fiends. Torres did the calculations in his head.
This isnât good. If he sent the man back like this, Paradiseâs existence might be revealed to the world. People wouldnât believe orphaned pickpockets, but they might listen to a player.
ââŠAlright. Letâs go to Paradise together. But may I ask you something first?â
âWhat is it?â
âYou havenât told anyone else about Paradise, have you?â
âOf course not. No one even knows Iâm in Rome.â Seo Jun-ho said what Torres wanted to hear, and he relaxed.
âGood. I will take you there.â
âGoodness, werenât you going somewhere?â
ââŠI can cancel my appointment.â He looked at Marco. âYou should come as well.â
âHuh? I have to feed the kids, though.â
âDonât you want to see your other little siblings? It will only take about two hours.â
âOh, if itâs only two hoursâŠâ Marco nodded slowly. He wanted to see their faces. âIâll go. Itâs raining, so theyâll just sleep anyway.â
âLet us be on our way.â Torres started to lead them away, and the Frost Queen clicked her tongue.
âContractor, what is your plan? I believe that man wishes to kill both you and the child.â Just as she said, Torresâs intentions were obvious. He was planning to bring them to Paradise and get rid of them there; it was the simplest solution.
Seo Jun-ho waited for Torres to go ahead. âAnyone would do that,â he whispered.
That is, until they were hit first.
ââŠWow.â Marco marveled at the estate beyond the gate. âIs that Paradise?â
âHaha, yes. Isnât it quite big?â
The playground was full of all sorts of equipment; slides, seesaws, swings, a soccer field, a basketball court.
âWhen itâs not raining, itâs full of kids.â
âThey must love it here.â
âBut of course. This is Paradise, after all.â Torres smiled and opened the gate. They passed by the playground and approached a large building.
âWow. Is this where they live?â
âLiving quarters, classrooms, the cafeteria, and even the baths are here.â
âWhere are my other siblings?â
âThey are in the lecture hall.â He turned to Seo Jun-ho. âI will show you the records after I show him around.â
âSure.â
âRight this way.â Torres escorted them down the hall as he explained Paradiseâs history. âThis year is the 20th anniversary of Paradiseâs founding.â
âIt must have a deep history.â
âAh, yes. Paradise has produced many outstanding individuals.â
âReally? Who?â
Torres paused, and the Frost Queen cackled.
âHe looks like a deer caught in the headlights. Of course he cannot tell you. They are all evil fiends.â
Torres laughed awkwardly and continued. âWell, most of them donât like others to know that they are orphans. I donât have their permission.â
âNo need to tell me, then.â
âThank you for understanding.â Torres bowed to him. As he took the lead again, he looked disgusted. Dammit, I canât believe I had to bow to this insect.Â
But his humiliation wouldnât last for long. Heâd already ordered his subordinates to check that no one was tailing him. If the two werenât being followed, he would kill them immediately.
âHow many children are here?â
â217.â
âYou remember the exact number?â
âThey are all like my own children.â
âI see.â Thatâs bullshit, Seo Jun-ho thought. He stopped and looked into the window of the lecture hall. âWhat are they doing?â
The children stood in two lines, facing each other with sharp weapons. They emanated a strong sense of bloodlust.
âHaha, theyâre training hard to become players.â
âDirector!â A teacher came running toward them and whispered something into Torresâs ear.
âItâs all clear. We even searched the rooftops, but heâs alone.â
ââŠIs that so?â Torres smiled like heâd remembered something funny and opened the door to the hall. âWonât you impart some of your wisdom on the children as a sunbae?â
âMe? I donât knowâŠâ
âIâm sure it will help them a lot.â
âWell, if you say soâŠâ Seo Jun-ho scratched his head and nodded. Torres led him inside and clapped his hands.
âAttention, everyone! Please welcome⊠What was your name?â
âSonny.â
âPlease welcome Mr. Sonny. He is an active player, and heâs come to teach you some things as a sunbae.â He gave a look to the teacher, who quickly escorted the children to the benches. Dozens of men and women started to approach them, carrying sharp weapons.
ââŠHey, doesnât something seem weird?â Marco asked from behind him, gulping. Seo Jun-ho glanced back at him.
âAs I thought, youâre quick. Youâd make a good player,â he muttered.
âWhat?â
One of the teachers slowly walked up to Seo Jun-ho. His eyes were red, seeming like they would start dripping blood at any second.
âF-fuck! H-his eyes are red?!â Marco cursed, quickly looking around. The two hundred children and thirty teachers all had red eyes. âI-if their eyes are redâŠâ
âIt means theyâre fiends.â
Torres smiled from his seat in the audience. âYouâre unlucky. This wouldnât have happened if you hadnât mentioned Paradise in front of me.â
ââŠDid you feed the children the blood of the demon clan?â
Torres shrugged, spreading his arms. âWhat do you think? How else would they become fiends?â
Seo Jun-ho let out a shaky breath. All these young children were fiends, and none of them had become one willingly.
âThey didnât want to become fiends.â
âOf course not. But they were practically begging for it when some of them were killed as examples.â His shoulders shook as he cackled. âOh, you shouldâve been there. It was hilarious! They were licking the blood off the groundâŠÂ Hahahaha! They were so desperate to live.â
ââŠWhat?â Marco pushed aside Seo Jun-ho, his face unreadable. He looked toward the benches, looking for familiar faces.
Anna, Finn, Leo, ShuâŠ
âNo⊠no⊠This canât beâŠâ Their faces were lifeless, eyes burning red like the others. Marco fell to his knees, crying. âI-I sent them off⊠I pushed them forward with my own handsâŠâ
Anna, who had cried because she didnât want to leave her sisters and brothers.
Finn, who had complained that Max would become the vice-leader if he left.
Leo and Shu, who had been the youngest ones.
He had sent them off with his own hands. Marco had simply wanted them to be happy.
âBut⊠howâŠ?â How had they become fiends? Why were they staring at him with those red eyes?
âUrp⊠Bleeeghh!â He felt sick. He saw stars.
Finally, Marco slowly picked himself up.
âYou bastardâŠ!â He ran toward Torres, but his body lifted into the air. One of the teachers took the chance to punch him in the stomach, and he bent over, vomiting again.
âHahaha! Look at him squirming like an insect!â Torres gestured toward Anna. âThatâs your brother. What do you think?â
ââŠâŠâ She stared down at Marco, who was groaning in pain. âI⊠do not think anything.â
Torres laughed until he cried.
Marco hit the ground with his fists. His skin was starting to peel and bleed, but he did not stop. He felt pathetic; he couldnât even get revenge for his siblings. Heâd forced them to come to such a place, despite promising that he would take care of his family.
âYouâŠâ He glared up at Torres, eyes full of venom. âSpecter-nim will kill you all.â
âSpecter? Thatâs a name I havenât heard in a while.â
Once upon a time, Torres had looked up to Specter. He shone like a star, and normal players like Torres could never even hope to reach him.
âBut itâs been too long.â
25 years had passed. That was more than enough time for his shine to fade.
âEven if Specter came back, there is no fiend that is afraid of him.â It was true. Not even Torres himself was scared. He was level 75 and had gotten stronger as a fiend. He was confident that he could defeat Specter.
âYou⊠Once Specter-nim comes for youâŠâ Rather than fear, Marco trembled in frustration.
Seo Jun-ho approached him. âIt hurts a lot, doesnât it?â
âNowâs not the timeâŠâ
âOnce you become a player, youâll experience things even more painful than this.â Seo Jun-ho took off his coat and placed it on top of Marco. âIf you want to become a player, you have to keep fighting. Even if your loved ones die right before your eyes.â
ââŠâŠ?â Marco wiped away his tears with his sleeve. But once he started, the tears wouldnât stop.
âIf you really want to become a player, you must be able to raise your sword before an enemy you cannot defeat.â
Marco looked at him like he was speaking nonsense. Even without the children, the fiends numbered over thirty. Trying to fight them would be suicide.
âYouâre telling me to fight right now?â
âOnly if youâre a player. But you havenât quite become one yetâŠâ Seo Jun-ho took off his sunglasses, mask and his cap. âIâll help you out this time.â
There was a simple black mask in his hand. There were no symbols or words written on it. But the simple mask was the most famous mask in the world.
âCut off the heads of all the fiends,â Seo Jun-ho whispered as he fastened his mask. The darkness around him started to undulate. He looked up at the fiends in a final warning. âThat way, their corpses will remain.â
Specterâs voice rang in the lecture hall.