After Ten Millennia in Hell

"Bait?"

Cha Yeon-Joo tilted her head.

"What are you talking about?"

"You know that the Demon Cult is looking for Players with high-ranking Traits to sacrifice, don't you?"

The man with the tattoo on his face had clearly said in the video: As expected from a major guild, the sacrifices they had offered us were Players with B-rank Traits or higher.

That meant they were looking for Players with high-ranking Traits to sacrifice.

If this weren't the case, the man wouldn't have praised the fact that the major guild had offered them Players with B-rank traits or higher.

"Yeah, I do."

Yeon-Joo nodded with a heavy expression.

She knew better than anyone that they were looking for Players with high-ranking Traits.

"They're probably targeting low-level Players."

"Low-level Players?"

"To be more precise, low-level Players with high-ranking Traits."

"Ah…!" Yeon-Joo exclaimed while nodding.

Players normally had higher chances of unlocking a high-ranking Trait the higher their level was. However, high-level Players were often in a party or had connections to guilds.

For the Demon Cultists who needed to be discreet, it was far too risky to aim to sacrifice high-level Players.

"I agree. Recently, both the number of Chaos Players around low-ranking Gates and the number of kidnapping incidents have skyrocketed," Baek Hwa-Yeon said with a heavy expression while nodding.

The first time she'd met Kang-Woo was when she was investigating such incidents in low-ranking Gates.

"That's why we're going to spread a rumor that there is an incredibly talented Player hunting in low-ranking Gates," Kang-Woo calmly said. "If we say that their Trait is at least S-rank or higher… the Demon Cult will probably take the bait."

"Hmm…"

Hwa-Yeon gulped after hearing Kang-Woo's words. She said in a worried voice, "But wouldn't the Demon Cultists give up on the Player if the rumor spreads too far and the Player garners too much attention?"

"No. That won't happen."

"… What makes you so sure?" Hwa-Yeon asked while making a confused expression.

"Because the heat is on."

"The heat is on?"

"They've realized that there was a spy among them, meaning they think there's a chance that information about the summoning has been leaked."

"Then wouldn't they be even more discreet?"

Kang-Woo shook his head at her question.

"They'll probably go for a home run."

"… Go for a home run?"

"Hwa-Yeon, what countermeasures would you place to stop them from hunting for sacrifices?"

"Hmm… If it were me, I'd order all members of the corps to monitor Players with B-rank Traits or higher."

"Yes, that would be the most logical way."

Since they were targeting low-level Players with high-ranking Traits, that was the most logical way to respond to the situation.

"Then, from their point of view, they would need to be very careful before hunting a Player with B-rank Traits or higher since they wouldn't know who's watching from where."

"That's true."

"That's why I'm sure they will aim for prey with an S-rank Trait rather than those with meager B-rank traits."

"…"

His explanation shut Hwa-Yeon's mouth.

Just like he said, if they knew that there was a chance that someone was monitoring the B-rank Players, rather than aiming for someone with a meager B-rank Trait, they would most definitely aim for a Player with an S-rank Trait to get a much bigger prize at once.

But…

"Isn't there a chance that they'll delay their plan and safely hunt Players with low-ranking Traits?" Hwa-Yeon asked him with a serious expression.

Kang-Woo smirked at her question.

"No. Maybe they'll hasten it even more, but they most definitely won't delay it."

"… What makes you say that?"

"Because they're human."

"…?"

Hwa-Yeon looked at Kang-Woo while making a confused expression.

Kang-Woo continued in a calm voice, "They said that they would receive more support from the Demon Cult if they succeed in this summoning plan. That's why they won't delay it."

"Isn't that a misjudgment? Would they take such a huge risk for a reward in front of them?"

"Yes."

"What makes you s—"

"Because that's human nature."

"…"

His firm answer made Hwa-Yeon close her mouth.

Kang-Woo smiled after seeing her reaction.

"Have you heard of the marshmallow experiment?"

"… I have."

Hwa-Yeon nodded while making a heavy expression.

The marshmallow experiment taught the simple lesson that one could earn even bigger rewards through self discipline and resisting immediate gratification.

"Do you know why the experiment is so famous?"

"Isn't it because it teaches the most basic principle for success?"

"No. It's only famous because that's not how most people are like."

"…"

Resisting the temptation for immediate gratification sounded simple.

From a third-person point of view, those who failed because they couldn't resist temptation looked stupid and pathetic. Most people, however, would also make that same stupid mistake if faced with such a situation by chance.

They knew that the temptation in front of them was dangerous… They also knew that, by resisting, an even bigger reward awaited them. But even so, humans couldn't resist the sweet marshmallow in front of them.

It wasn't because they were irrational or stupid… It was because the mechanism that controlled one's desires was not designed to look at the bigger picture.

'Of course, it's not like people who can control such desires don't exist.'

Kang-Woo's eyes shone sharply.

Just like Kang-Woo had said, it wasn't that there was no one who could resist such immediate gratification. However, the man in the red mask and the rest of the Demon Cultists at least couldn't.

'Because they've taken in demonic energy.'

A human who took in demonic energy would slowly gain the body of a demon, and those with a demon's body would always crave to fulfill their desires.

It was hard for even Kang-Woo, the lord of the Nine Hells, to control his desires sometimes even after having spent ten millennia as a demon, so he was positive that there was no way that the Demon Cultists could.

"Then, who do you have in mind to use as bait?" Yeon-Joo asked.

"Low-ranking Players with an S-rank Trait or higher are either already receiving tons of attention or have entered a major guild. Don't tell me you're trying to use yourself as bait?"

"No. I'm already known as the rookie receiving the support of the Red Rose Guild, so that won't work."

"Then, are you planning on lying?"

"That would pretty much scream that it's bait, so that'd be impossible."

"…"

Kang-Woo's answer shut Yeon-Joo's mouth. Frowning, she finally opened her mouth.

"Then who?"

"I have someone in mind," Kang-Woo answered while smiling.

A low-level Player whose Trait was higher than S rank… Someone who wasn't part of any major guild… Not only that, but someone who wasn't very well known at the moment.

Kang-Woo knew someone like that.

'Kim Si-Hun.'

Kim Si-Hun had such overwhelming talent that Kang-Woo had made him his Familiar as quickly as possible. Si-Hun was also so talented that he had unlocked not an S but an SSS-rank Trait on his First Awakening.

'They won't be able to resist taking the bait.'

Kang-Woo's eyes shone sharply as he thought about the man in the red mask.

* * *

A week after the spy incident…

After accepting Kang-Woo's proposal, Yeon-Joo and Hwa-Yeon discreetly spread rumors about Si-Hun.

They didn't put him on the news or spread his name through the press; they simply made his name spread like gossip among low-level Players.

'Very impressive,' Kang-Woo thought while checking social media with shining eyes.

There was a post so inaccurate that it could pretty much be considered a myth—it mentioned that there was an incredible Player who was hiding their Trait rank and hunting in low-ranking Gates.

The post didn't grab too much attention but was fun enough to have other people comment on it.

He wasn't sure if it was Yeon-Joo's or Hwa-Yeon's doing, but the dissemination of the rumor was faster than Kang-Woo thought possible.

'Neither of them seemed talented for things like this.'

Hwa-Yeon, who gave off the feel of a by-the-book general, and Yeon-Joo, who had a fiery personality, didn't look talented in manipulating information.

'The one that would be good at things like this is…'

He thought of someone he'd frequently seen in the Red Rose Guild.

A gentle-looking young man—the Red Rose Guild's Chief of Human Resources Management, Park Hyun-Woo.

'Well, I guess it doesn't matter who did it as long as the result is good.'

Kang-Woo put his smartphone back in his pocket.

He lightly stretched and then turned to the window of a semi-basement flat across the road.

Through the window, he saw Si-Hun, who was taking care of a middle-aged woman.

"His household circumstances are worse than Seol-Ah's," Kang-Woo mumbled in a low voice while looking at Si-Hun.

It had been a week since the bait operation had begun.

Kang-Woo had been watching Si-Hun all day every day without ever going back home because he had no idea when the Demon Cult would attack Si-Hun.

'I can't afford to lose Kim Si-Hun.'

He had decided to use him as bait, but he had no intentions of putting him in real danger.

Si-Hun didn't know it, but he was a Familiar whose soul had been bound to Kang-Woo's soul.

Kang-Woo had no intention of sacrificing someone as talented as Si-Hun as bait.

'Since I've turned him into my Familiar, I need to take responsibility for him.'

If Si-Hun discovered the truth, he would most likely call Kang-Woo a hypocrite. In the first place, Kang-Woo wasn't thinking about taking responsibility out of guilt.

'You're going to be great in the future.'

Kang-Woo looked at Si-Hun, who was taking care of a middle-aged woman with a sad expression on his face.

Si-Hun was going to become stronger and greater in the future, and he would become Kang-Woo's solid supporter. In that sense, spreading rumors about him was just accelerating what would eventually happen down the line.

Click.

"I'm off, Mother."

Si-Hun, who had been taking care of his mother, walked out the door to the semi-basement flat.

He had left to hunt with Seol-ah and Tae-Soo in a Gate as usual.

"Haa."

Si-Hun sighed while making a grim expression.

He seemed lost in thought for a while. His eyes were red, but as if trying to improve his mood, he shouted to himself.

"Stay strong! Just a bit more and the debt will be fully paid off!" Si-Hun said while touching the sword at his waist.

Kang-Woo laughed in disbelief.

'He was even born in a poor household.'

It was a common setup in fantasy novels—one who was born into an extremely poor household and became a Player to support his family.

'Is he really the protagonist?' Kang-Woo thought to himself while following Si-Hun from behind.