There are three candidates for the Dragon King’s new shaman.
One of them is Yoon Yeorang, the most powerful candidate.
In PMH, at the age of 17, Yoon Yeorang received a revelation from the Dragon King in her dream and saw that the Dragon King who was at the palace was fake.
Because of that, Yoon Yeorang raised suspicions and failed to gain trust.
She wasn’t selected as a shaman and was eventually killed by the Black Screen.
“Does that have to do with what Jo Euishin said about the shaman convention?”
“Yes. Yoon Yeorang was the only candidate who could distinguish the real Dragon King.”
“It must have something to do with the Dragon King then.”
After answering Hwang Jiho’s question, Eunho asked me something.
“Euishin hyung, do you know what kind of revelation the Dragon King gave to Yoon Yeorang?”
Eunho played a little of PMH as Cheon Sungheon, but he must’ve forgotten the details.
He saw the ending, but he went through the gameplay tutorial that I set up.
I answered his question.
“That wasn’t shown. All I know about Yoon Yeorang was what I said during the last briefing.”
“Yoon Yeorang was a playable character, and she first appeared in the Dragon Palace scenario and had an important role. That’s all the information that you have?”
“Yeah.”
“…”
Eunho didn’t say anything after, and although he still had the same gentle look on his face, he didn’t seem to think well about PMH.
At that time, the few remaining users cleared the scenario and lamented how much of a failed game PMH was.
The time when Yoon Yeorang appeared and left was after the Concrete Layer Collapse and before Yeom Junyeol’s appearance, so the user base was in full swing.
The futility and frustration with the Dragon Palace scenario were laid even by those who endured harsher story plots.
“I’ve thought about contacting Yoon Yeorang in advance. But she’s an honest person so there’s a high chance that information will leak out easily.”
Yoon Yeorang has lived a surprisingly flat life, except for the fact that she was selected as a candidate for the Dragon King’s shaman.
Yoon Yeorang grew up in a rich and harmonious family environment, was excellent enough to study at Eungwang High, and overall had a smooth life.
Although she was selected as a shaman candidate, Yoon Yeorang just thinks she has gained a special talent.
She knew that many players of her age were better than her at Eungwang High.
Yoon Yeorang doesn’t know how dangerous her power is, doesn’t know how to hide it, and doesn’t feel the need to do so.
‘There’s a possibility that a traitor will find out that I approached Yoon Yeorang. If so, they’ll be more persistent in their quest to catch her.’
The traitors started to be wary of Yoon Yeorang from the time of the shaman selection test.
That wariness ended up in murder.
In the last test, the shamans will present a poem to the Dragon King, and on the spot, Yoon Yeorang declares that the Dragon King is a fake.
‘I want to secure her safety at least until the test.’
Yoon Yeorang has just turned 17, so she’s probably meeting the Dragon King in her dream by now.
It would be a surprising fact for the Dragon Clan or the shamans, but Yoon Yeorang didn’t think much of it.
She’ll be safe because that fact has not spread yet.
“The Dragon Clan’s traitors have joined hands with the Black Screen. If you contact Yoon Yeorang here and not in the Dragon Palace, the Black Screen will target her.”
In that case, there’s a possibility that the Black Screen will reach out to Yoon Yeorang’s family or friends by mobilizing a group of people or players that I don’t know.
It can be prevented if Yoon Yeorang is thoroughly guarded, but that would increase the variables and might lead to unnecessary skirmishes.
That’s why I want to contact Yoon Yeorang in the Dragon Palace where it’s cut off from the outside world.
“You’ll talk to her during the selection.”
“Yes. It’s too dangerous to meet outside the Dragon Palace.”
“I see. I think that’s better.”
Eunho agreed.
He changed the subject and asked a question, this time to Jeokho.
“Jeokho-nim, when you went to the Dragon Palace with Yong Jegun, you said that the Dragon King wasn’t there.”
“Yes, that’s right.”
“What did Hwangryong say about it?”
According to Jeokho, no matter how much Yong Jegun called the Dragon King, he did not appear.
It was strange that the Dragon King would ignore the call of the dragon that he adored so much who was even called his son.
However, Hwangryong didn’t seem to think much of it.
“Hwangryong didn’t find it very strange. The Dragon Palace is a boundary between the human and divine world, and although it’s very close to the divine world, it’s not fully connected.”
“He thinks that the Dragon King was away from the boundary for a while and did not hear Yong Jegun’s voice.”
“Yes. The Dragon King will come on the first day of the New Year so we can meet him then.”
Hwangryong wasn’t a traitor, but his actions helped them.
Even Hwangryong in PMH couldn’t distinguish between the fake and real Dragon King.
If he could, the scenario would’ve been very different.
‘It’s likely that the traitors also used their hands on Hwangryong.’
Hwangryong follows the Dragon King most closely among the Dragon Clan.
He even gave up his freedom and chose to live in the Dragon Palace.
Yoon Yeorang is certainly an excellent candidate for a shaman, but it was strange that Hwangryong, who had been around the Dragon King for a long time, didn’t even recognize him.
Perhaps the traitors did something to cover his eyes.
“You think the traitors did something to Hwangryong, don’t you Euishin hyung?”
“Yeah.”
“That’s why you asked them not to mention anything about a traitor to Hwangryong.”
Hwangryong doesn’t know that there are traitors yet.
I judged that it would be dangerous to know the truth in a situation where there was a traitor in the Dragon Palace and that they had influence strong enough to deceive Hwangryong.
For Hwangryong, it would be better to inform him when Cheongryong and Yong Jegun are present.
Cheongryong seemed to want to let Hwangryong know about it right away, but my persuasion convinced him.
“Then we can’t confirm when the Dragon King started to be absent. We can’t ask Hwangryong nor the shamans.”
That’s certainly true, but we have a means to know when the Dargon King left.
I might be the last person to see him.
“It wasn’t at the Dragon Palace, but I had a conversation with the Dragon King.”
“What? What happened?”
Hwang Jiho, in the form of Hwang Yuho, suddenly stopped eating his coconut sherbet and asked.
He was eating so well so I had no choice but to answer right away to not make him disappointed.
“It was when I visited the Red Lion building and was treated by the shamans.”
At that time, the Destiny Skill was triggered and the Dragon King appeared.
He expressed his gratitude for saving Yong Jegun and Yeom Junyeol from Cadmus.
‘He even told me that I upset Yeom Junyeol.’
It was a pity that I couldn’t show it to my student.
The Dragon King also handed me a bead containing Dragon King Scales, a gesture that allowed me to enter the Dragon Palace.
“So you met the Dragon King in person when you obtained his permission. Did you receive it yourself and not through a third party?”
“You’re only saying such an important thing right now, Euishin hyung?”
Hwang Jiho and Eunho said something when I revealed that I met the Dragon King.
I was worried he’d use that word, but fortunately, he didn’t.
There are many cases that I haven’t talked about because I can’t reveal the Destiny Skill.
If I talk about them later, would I be punished with that word?
I think I should continue keeping them as secrets.
“Anyway, it’s a relief you came back safely after an encounter with a superior being.”
“It’s something that can narrow down the time of the Dragon King’s absence.”
Hwang Jiho and Eunho still looked unhappy.
I’ve met several superior beings since I came to this world, and I guess it’s a much bigger deal than I thought.
“Then we’d better double-check how the shamans acted at that time.”
“I asked Cheongryong to look into it.”
“They’re not handing over information, so it seems that they haven’t found anything.”
The conversation continued after that.
Most of the work was to reaffirm pre-established plans.
There was no dragon here so the things that we could confirm were limited, but the simulation was beneficial because we’d be dealing with a place unfamiliar to the Tiger Clan.
“We’d better rest now. The Dragon Palace is far away.”
With Eunho’s words, the last operational meeting on the ground ended.
***
Top floor of the Red Lion Team Building, at Yeom Bangyeol’s office.
On the day before the trip to the Dragon Palace, several executives gathered after all the guests had left.
Only after Cheongryong covered the walls, ceilings, and floor did Yong Jegun open his mouth.
“And Hwangryong?”
“He’s doing well. There’s always a shaman around him.”
Cheongryong spoke with a blurry expression.
Other than the Dragon King’s shamans, there were several shamans at the Dragon Palace.
Although they’re dubbed “shamans” out of respect, they were technically the eliminated ones.
Among them were those who weren’t chosen as shamans, those who chose to stay in the Dragon Palace to assist Hwangryong.
They’ve had interactions with the actual five shamans.
In particular, Yoohwang was quite close to them.
She knew all their names and faces and would contact them personally.
Yoohwang is sure to be a traitor, so those who are close to her cannot be trusted.
“Would it have been better if I gave Hwangryong a hint the last time you met him? But many shamans were watching that time too.”
“They may have been watching. As the benefactor said, we’d better keep quiet until we go.”
The shamans’ gazes didn’t bother them when they considered them as family.
However, after things changed, there were many suspicious situations.
The deep-rooted doubts dug deep and reached the choices they made long ago.
“In the first place, why did they say they would remain in the Dragon Palace when they were not chosen by the Dragon King?”
Hwangryong remained in the palace for the Dragon King.
The Dragon Palace was a beautiful and prosperous place, but he had to give up his freedom.
Communication outside is possible through energy waves, but he can’t easily come and go to this land.
His choice was solely in service of the Dragon King and the Dragon Clan.
“I thought they did it to follow the Dragon King. But the existence of traitors means that they can have different intentions.”
Cheongryong believed in the shamans that the Dragon King chose.
When that faith collapsed, questions only kept rising.
“The absence of the Dragon King must also have something to do with the shamans’ betrayal. What did they do to the Dragon King? What do they gain by doing so!”
Most of the dragons there couldn’t answer.
None of them really knows.
They had no idea why the shamans would betray them.
Yong Jegun, who had been directly exposed to the desires and wishes of humans, smiled as if he knew the answer.
“The candidates and the shamans are human. They thought they’d get something they want if they stayed with us for a long time.”
Yong Jegun smiled mischievously at the only human in that room, Yeom Bangyeol.
Yeom Bangyeol was flustered, but after grasping Yong Jegun’s intention, he was lost in thought.
Then, he carefully opened his mouth.
“Don’t tell me what those traitors want is…”
The dragons fell silent when they heard Yeom Bangyeol.
What came out of his mouth was something that humans could do from greed.
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