Chapter 9
-Do you want to kill that annoying NPC?
The merchant who overcharges you,
the village chief who shifts annoying errands onto you,
the blacksmith who fails to enhance your gear,
the allies who raise your blood pressure,
and the annoying nobles who stab you in the back after asking for favors.
Introducing the character who can behead all of them:
Marthus the Berserker!
If there were a character advertisement, it would have phrases like this.
The original player character Marthus was such an existence.
Typically, NPCs in games possess attributes that prevent them from being attacked or have respawn properties, allowing them to return to life after being defeated.
This element prevents the game from being fundamentally halted, whether it’s due to quests, storylines, or minor tasks like weapon enhancements.
However,
Marthus broke that common sense.
He was a berserker, a killer who could slaughter all without distinction between friend and foe.
From the beginning of the game, he wields the advanced item Calalbog, and unlike other player characters starting with an intermediate combat level of rank 4, Marthus begins as a rank 9 Elite warrior.
At a glance, he could be described as an overpowered character from the start.
To top it off, he’s handsome, making him the most popular among female players.
However,
despite this overpowered aspect, it was widely agreed that the difficulty of the Marthus route was significantly higher than that of other characters.
It wasn’t just that the enemies were stronger.
The worst drawback and most prominent feature of this character was that
Marthus could not interact with NPCs.
No, he could, but the only actions he could take were limited to two:
Kill or ignore.
From the tutorial instructor to blacksmiths, priests, and even the emperor encountered later,
for Marthus, the progression of the story revolved solely around whether to kill or spare those before him.
This applied not just to the flow of quests but also to essential interactions that were considered necessary.
To obtain gear, he had to kill other warriors or the blacksmith; for healing, he had to kill priests to get holy water and potions or rely on the poorly efficient self-healing.
Moreover, since his weapon was fixed to Calalbog, he eventually showed inferior combat strength compared to other characters.
His differentiated early specs felt like a trap, as everything was extremely skewed toward combat.
Additionally, due to this unique feature that set him apart from other player characters, he enjoyed cult-like popularity.
Of course, among some of us who were skilled, there were those who attempted extreme playthroughs, like clearing NPCs without killing them with Marthus, achieving actual success.
However, this was merely a peculiar route utilizing extreme physical skills.
In the actual storyline, Marthus leaves a trail of blood wherever he goes, turning everyone into enemies, ultimately meeting his demise at the hands of the emperor when Calalbog is broken.
A cruel and merciless fate…
Yet at the same time, he provokes curiosity about how he ended up like this and elicits a slight feeling of sympathy.
But there was never any concrete information revealed about what happened to him, nor any interactions with other NPCs, leaving the mystery of his past unresolved until the very end.
The only thing we could infer was that “Something Related to Nobles Happened.”
With this unclear setting, users were limited to forming their hypotheses and speculations.
In the end, due to the lack of additional information, it sadly remained a *McGuffin.
**T/n: A “McGuffin” is a term commonly used in storytelling, particularly in film and literature, to refer to an object, device, or event that serves as a plot device to drive the story forward.**
And at this very moment.
The problematic Marthus,
No, as I looked at Magellan, who was currently getting beaten and lying on the ground,
I found myself pondering for a moment.
Just a while ago, Magellan had earnestly poured out excuses that could be deemed apologies in front of me.
Although he was notorious among us as a bounty hunter, he didn’t seem to be so deranged that he would act like a mindless killer.
I couldn’t know for sure, but something must have happened in the following two years that twisted his nature.
Ultimately, what was important was how I would handle this guy.
Killing him… that feels a bit too much. After all, he is someone I owe a debt to…
While taking revenge or dealing with annoying aftermath could be one option,
personally, he was a character I had played for quite a long time and felt a certain attachment to.
The thrill I felt when I successfully completed the no-kill clear challenge with him was one of the most exhilarating moments in my life.
Thanks to that, I received quite a few balloons and spent a warm winter, which was a nice bonus.
Thus, in the spirit of repaying that past favour,
I decided to spare him for another reason I couldn’t overlook.
I had already reached out to one protagonist… Ambasha, and brought her under my wing.
In this situation, if I killed future Marthus as well, it was obvious that the future, already tangled, would become even more complicated.
While I didn’t care what happened on land,
there was a risk that I could inadvertently attract some strange attention, leading to the original story’s calamity igniting toward the sea, which would truly become bothersome.
To eliminate troublesome elements, I decided to let him flow along the original narrative.
Although it wasn’t a flow that could be considered good for him.
Now that I think about it… I’m curious. How did this guy end up like this in two years?
I might soon uncover the truth behind the McGuffin that never appeared in the original.
Feeling a strong curiosity about that fact, I unknowingly muttered in a small voice.
“Just how did he get involved with the nobles…”
***
“Let’s stop here.”
With those words, the ruthless beating came to an end.
Magellan and his crew, having been mercilessly pummelled, were in a pitiful state, with no part of their bodies left unharmed.
Fortunately, it didn’t seem like anyone had broken anything, but this was the first time they had been so thoroughly beaten like this.
However, despite everything, they were inwardly relieved.
“I’m… alive…”
“I thought I was going to die…”
Rumours about the fate of those who had touched the Pirate King’s crew were already widely known.
Some would find themselves tossed into the sea, their limbs severed, becoming shark bait, or
some would be tied to the bow of a ship, suffering a miserable death from hunger and thirst under the scorching sun.
No matter what they thought of, the fact that it ended here was truly a stroke of luck.
At that moment,
“Get up.”
“Y-yes!”
The command of the Pirate King echoed in their ears.
Now, just hearing that voice brought a heavy sense of fear, causing Magellan’s crew to stagger as they forced themselves to stand.
“Let’s end it here for today. But if a similar incident occurs again… Don’t expect any mercy then.”
“Y-yes! I-I understand!”
“I’ll make sure to remember, Pirate King!”
“Th-thank you for your mercy!”
As they expressed their sincere gratitude for the reaper withdrawing his scythe and leaving,
just then,
as the Pirate King turned to the side,
a barely audible, tiny voice reached Magellan’s ears.
“How on earth did you get involved with the nobles…”
“?!…”
A different tone emerged, tinged with curiosity.
However, for Magellan, this was a spine-chilling story.
Didn’t it imply that the Pirate King already knew he had come here on a noble’s commission?
In other words, it meant that the Pirate King being entangled in this commission wasn’t mere coincidence.
“Could it be…”
Feeling confused by the thoughts that began to arise,
the Pirate King approached his subordinates standing nearby.
“Are you alright?”
“Y-yes… I-I’m sorry, Captain… I…”
Franklin apologized in a meek voice.
However, the Pirate King gently patted her shoulder and spoke in a calm tone.
“It’s alright. I know you tried hard. Don’t be disheartened, and keep up the good work from now on.”
“Y-yes, I will… Captain…”
With a mixture of embarrassment on her fearsome face, she seemed to blush.
Even that small smile felt strangely eerie, but the Pirate King seemed entirely unconcerned, smiling back at her.
He then turned his gaze from Franklin to the girl next to him.
Looking at her sparkling eyes, he sent a warm look filled with kindness.
“Father…”
“You almost had a disaster. Still, thank you for calling me at the right time. You did well, Ambasha.”
“Hehe…”
The girl, who called him father, beamed with a red face at those words.
As I watched that scene filled with warmth, completely different from earlier,
Magellan felt as if the puzzles in his head were finally falling into place, and he began to understand what was happening.
“That dirty Duke… He intended to mess with us from the start!”
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