Pick Me Up Infinite Gacha! Novel - Chapter 328
Pick me Up – Chapter 328 – Special: Interlude Story (1)
There was a mobile game called Pick Me Up.
The game, which had gained popularity thanks to its unique gameplay and system, got embroiled in increasingly severe operational controversies until it finally had to shut down its service.
This is a story that occurs after that.
A story that no one will know, taking place after the end of that game.
————
There was a universe called Mobius.
Mobius, composed of countless dimensions, came to the end of its life and disintegrated into pieces, disappearing completely.
But there were those who wished to revive this universe, and those people were the twin goddesses called Tel and Ikar.
The twin goddesses resurrected Mobius, defying the laws of the universe, which inevitably brought about a judgment.
However, there was a man who inherited their will.
That man, known as Han Israt, gathered the knights and armies that followed him, creating a new territory and proclaiming himself king, and the people called those lands Valhalla.
This is a story in Valhalla.
A land that was once called the frontier and where, even now, wars are fought to prevent the destruction of Mobius.
This is a story about that land of endless wars.
About a group of adventurers who make a resolution.
————–
Crack.
Crackle.
A campfire burned, illuminating the dark alley.
Sizzle.
The aroma of roasting meat filled the air as chunks of fat sizzled.
“Ugh!”
A woman waved her hand against the smell.
She covered her nose, but the odor persisted.
“What a smell! It smells like pork! Why does it smell so bad?”
“It’s fat! Pork fat. Is the meat spoiled?”
“I can’t eat this. How am I supposed to eat something like this?”
“Then starve. I’ll eat your share.”
The woman shook her head quickly.
“No, I just want something delicious. Here!”
The woman searched her clothes and pulled out a small vial.
It was pepper.
“No salt? Are we out?”
The woman looked displeased.
There was no other option.
She generously sprinkled the pepper she had over the meat skewer.
“Aaah!”
Suddenly, she screamed.
The two beside her, used to it, paid no attention.
“Why? Why am I doing this?”
The woman stomped her feet while sitting.
The dress, which was once luxurious, was dirty and stained.
The special material couldn’t be cleaned easily by just rubbing it with water.
“I was a Court Mage in Taonier. I lived in a grand castle, enjoying delicious food and luxurious clothes. And what is this? Why am I in this misery?”
The woman held her head.
“I, Eolka Rivel Strashur, why am I here, in this state?”
She shook her head uncontrollably.
“Here, eat.”
“Ah, thanks.”
Eolka took the skewer offered to her and took a bite.
‘Why… is it delicious?’
She felt like crying.
It was a sign that her tastes had become vulgar.
Probably because she hadn’t eaten meat in over a month.
“Hehe, we were lucky. I didn’t think there would be leftover meat.”
Nom.
The freckled girl beside Eolka took a bite of her skewer.
Her name was Jenna Cirai.
“…”
The man in the corner also took his skewer.
The fierce-looking man was named Belkist.
Crack.
Crackle.
In the late night, the campfire burned while the three ate their skewers around it.
“When I first came here, I didn’t have this intention…”
Eolka murmured with dull eyes.
“I should have stood out grandly… and been praised by everyone…”
She had failed.
She had failed miserably.
Reality and expectations were too different.
“There’s nothing we can do, sister. It’s the situation we’re in.”
“Doesn’t it bother you to live like a beggar?”
“I’m fine. I have my older siblings here with me.”
Jenna smiled broadly.
‘Why does she have that mentality?’
Well.
That’s probably why she adapted well even in the Lobby.
Haa.
A deep sigh escaped Eolka’s lips.
Soon, her regret turned into anger.
‘This is outrageous!’
She had heard that the man had a high position in Valhalla.
And yet, he didn’t even come to receive them.
No, he didn’t even know they were coming.
Nevertheless, he should have done something…
“Aah!”
Eolka threw her head back, still chewing on meat.
Despite her reaction, the other two were accustomed to it.
‘Han Israt.’
Eolka had regained her memory.
She knew what had happened in her past life.
How she had lived in the Lobby inside the game.
When she set foot in Valhalla, the memories had returned like magic.
‘The reason I came back here is…’
What was it?
She didn’t know.
Because life in Taonier was boring?
Yes, in that castle, she had no chance to show her brilliance.
There were no monsters. No enemies to fight.
She just studied and did research all day.
“Ugh!”
Eolka complained.
‘He doesn’t even have to know.’
I thought if I became famous, if no one ignored me, eventually he would find out.
But… what is this?
Valhalla.
This world, which they reached guided by a fairy, was not easy.
It was harder than she thought.
To grow here, you have to fight against the Fragments and absorb their interference power.
That’s right.
It’s the same as the system in the game Pick Me Up.
Loki created a new system to help the heroes grow.
The stronger the enemy.
By defeating it, you can absorb more interference power and become stronger.
The level and skill system.
‘But, it’s too late.’
In the early days of Valhalla.
The borderlands were full of endless Fragments.
Wherever you went, there were enemies, and they attacked Valhalla day and night, trying to destroy Mobius.
At that time, the heroes, most of them belonging to Niflheim, kept Valhalla in a precarious state, on the brink of destruction.
As a result, they became incredibly strong.
Eolka and her group arrived after the lands had stabilized.
Neither in the early days when they fought to the death nor in the middle, when they expanded territories in repeated wars of conquest.
They arrived at the final stage when Valhalla was settled.
That is.
There was no opportunity to become strong.
Even if there was, the difference with the initial members was too great.
For beginners like Eolka, no opportunities would be given.
“Ugh!”
Eolka shook her head while clutching her hair.
“Why is it taking so long? Why? Why?”
“Sister, have another one.”
“Ah, thanks.”
She accepted the skewer Jenna offered.
They still had enough pork fat obtained from the local butcher.
‘Ugh.’
Eolka muttered while chewing the meat, annoyed.
She and her companions lived in poverty for this reason.
In Valhalla, everything turns into interference power.
That is, interference power is money and a means to become strong.
Anyway, they have to hunt Fragments.
But the weak Fragments have almost gone extinct.
They are only occasionally found when searching outside the outer walls.
They capture those Fragments and harvest their interference power.
‘With that, it’s not enough to survive.’
To become strong, they need to gather interference power, but for that, they need to be strong.
Eolka and her group were trapped in this dead-end maze, wasting their time.
“Don’t worry, sister!”
Jenna patted the sobbing Eolka on the back.
“According to my calculations, in about 100 years, we could reach the next level.”
“Is that supposed to be comforting?!”
Eolka suddenly flared up.
Unfair.
Yes, this is unfair.
“There’s no choice.”
The man with a sword at his waist muttered while chewing his skewer.
The other two were calm; only Eolka was making a fuss.
“The world has always been unfair. If it bothers you, get stronger.”
“Then, do you have a plan? This way, we won’t get anywhere.”
“We’ll have to take risks. If we try to do it safely, we won’t be able to catch up to them.”
Risks.
That meant facing Fragments much stronger than them.
Ugh.
Although she knew it in theory.
“Or should we ask for help?”
“Who would help us?”
“Let’s notify my brother.”
“How?”
Ta-da.
Jenna pulled out a poster from her clothes.
<Victory Celebration Parade>
<Date – Year X, Month X, Day X, XX o’clock, Valhalla Calendar>
<Location – Grand Plaza>
<Commemoration of the 596th Territorial Expansion War…>
Jenna smiled.
“How about this? I took it from a nearby wall.”
“Victory Parade?”
“Looks like my brother and his group won another big battle. They’re going to celebrate it in the Grand Plaza.”
The Grand Plaza.
Eolka murmured.
She knew where it was. Near the south gate of the city. That vast, dirty place.
The date was tomorrow afternoon.
“It’s not like him. Winning is winning, why celebrate?”
“Hey, it’s different from when we were together. There are many eyes on him, he needs to worry about his image. Also to boost morale.”
“Different from when he was with us…” Eolka murmured.
“Yes, sister. My brother is different now. He’s not the same person who fought with us.”
“A different person?”
“He’s the king here. He has many subordinates. If we approach saying we’re friends, we’ll get kicked out.”
“Hm. I don’t like it.”
Eolka cleared her throat.
“Anyway, I’ll give him a piece of my mind. They said to come here and here we are, but they don’t give us opportunities and don’t consider us.”
“Consideration for newbies?”
“Well, something like that.”
She clenched her fist with determination.
She had a lot to say.
She could complain all day if necessary.
Eolka and her group decided to participate in the celebration parade the next day.
Anyway, that was their only chance to meet him.
They didn’t have the audacity to go to the tower and brag about knowing the king.
Thus, the next afternoon.
The celebration parade took place in the Grand Plaza near the south gate of Valhalla.
A crowd had gathered in the marble plaza.
“So many people!”
Eolka frowned as she found herself trapped in the crowd.
“They came to see my brother!”
“Hm, seems like he’s someone important.”
“Of course, he’s the king.”
The king.
Eolka pursed her lips.
“Looks like half the city is here.”
Belkist, who was a few steps away, murmured.
The land of the frontier, Valhalla.
Initially, it had the shape of a tower, but as the population increased, a city formed around the tower.
Here, not only combatants resided, but also many heroes who supported them.
The current population of Valhalla exceeded 100,000 people.
It started with less than 20,000, but now it could be compared to a small country.
At the center of this growth were the Border King, Loki, and his five knights.
Bam! Bam!
The band started playing a march.
The event had begun.
Waaah!
The crowd in the plaza erupted in cheers.
Eolka, at the edge of the crowd, couldn’t see what was happening.
“What’s going on? What’s happening?”
“I think my brother showed up!”
Jenna slipped nimbly through the crowd.
Like a flying squirrel. Eolka, astonished, quickly followed.
“Ugh!”
So narrow!
“Hey, who are you!”
“Wait your turn!”
She squeezed through the complaining people.
Where is he, where?
She started to see clearly.
Eolka looked around the plaza.
Soldiers in black uniforms marched.
‘Ah, there he is.’
A familiar figure.
But something was strange.
Eolka widened her eyes.
‘Is he riding a horse?’
A dazzling uniform and cape.
Plus, he was riding a purebred horse.
It was completely different from the man she knew.
‘A different person?’
No, she was sure it was him.
Behind the man, several men and women who seemed to be his subordinates followed on foot.
I can’t see well from here.
Eolka hurriedly made her way through the crowd towards the north of the plaza.
I need to see him from the front.
She received several pushes and tramples as she moved towards the north of the plaza until she finally saw the man’s face.
‘Ah, there he is.’
Clip-clop.
In sync with the march, the man passed by riding his horse.
Seeing his face, Eolka laughed.
‘Serves you right!’
He seemed to be on the verge of death.
A look that showed how much he hated being there, doing it reluctantly.
Eolka recognized that expression.
Because she had been his companion in life and death.
‘It suits you well.’
It was always me who suffered, but seeing that expression on him was refreshing.
‘Han Israt, I knew it.’
Han Israt.
That was the man’s name.
“Ah, it’s my brother!”
Suddenly.
Jenna popped her head out from behind Eolka.
“Brother! Can you hear me?”
Jenna waved her hand energetically, but her call was lost among the cheers of the crowd.
“Looks like he can’t hear me.”
“That man looks ridiculous. What is he doing?”
“He’s in the middle of an event.”
“Why? He looks like he doesn’t want to be there.”
Jenna smiled.
“He’s the king here. He needs to do it to keep morale up. A show, you know?”
“A show.”
“I think it’s called image creation. It’s hard to understand the terms from Earth. Anyway, he shows a grand and spectacular image to increase loyalty. The dictators on Earth often do it.”
Dictator?
Eolka blinked at the avalanche of unfamiliar terms.
“Anyway, it’s one of the duties he has to govern Valhalla.”
Looks like he really doesn’t want to do it.
Being a king seems like a pretty exhausting job.
Han’s mouth twisted into a grimace.
And at the same time, his eyebrows furrowed.
He looked like he wanted to fight someone at any moment.
‘Ah, that woman…’
Behind Han was a woman with silver hair dressed in uniform.
She smiled, satisfied, as she watched the king march in front of her.
A great difference in their expressions.
“Ah, poor brother.”
Jenna said.
“I couldn’t do something like that. It’s impressive.”
“Poor?”
“Yes, he’s bound by many responsibilities. It must be suffocating.”
“Bound…?”
If so, he could leave it all.
He could live naturally.
“But he can’t. He’s the king.”
“It’s complicated.”
“I don’t like it.”
Belkist, who appeared behind them, said.
“Ah, you scared me! You could warn when you arrive! You gave me a fright.”
“I don’t like it. He’s become weak.”
Belkist’s eyes became fiercer.
“The man I knew killed anyone who bothered him without hesitation. Why has he become so docile? The man I knew would have destroyed this place and sent everyone to hell.”
“No, he wasn’t that extreme… That’s just your imagination.”
“Shut up.”
Belkist looked at the subordinates behind Han.
They were the five famous knights in Valhalla.
Although two of them were not present at the event.
“Have those guys clouded Han’s vision?”
“They don’t seem evil…”
“Hm.”
Belkist looked away.
He seemed disgusted.
“Anyway, we need to get closer and talk…”
Eolka stopped in her tracks.
She met Han Israt’s gaze.
“…”
They met.
They definitely, without a doubt, met.
The man’s eyes did not look elsewhere but directly at Eolka.
But it was only for a moment. Han looked ahead.
And didn’t look back at them.
As if they didn’t know each other.
“…”
What?
Eolka’s eyes blurred.
“Sister? Sister?”
“Ah, yes.”
Jenna waved her hand in front of Eolka’s eyes.
“What happened?”
“Nothing… nothing…”
We met eyes.
And nothing happened.
‘Couldn’t he at least greet me with his eyes?’
At least he could have nodded.
But he did nothing.
As if they had never known each other.
“…”
Eolka suddenly felt depressed.
“I’m going back.”
“Sister?”
Step by step.
Eolka turned around and walked out of the plaza.