I Gave Up Being Stronger

Chapter 412

Kim Chul-Soo texted Marshmallow.

[I have a lot of questions about recent events. Can you arrange a meeting with Encyclopedia for me?]

Marshmallow sent an affirmative reply. As the appointed time approached, Marshmallow thought, ‘He will be here soon.’

Marshmallow’s marshmallow-shaped head always reflected his emotions. Currently, his head had hardened and grown slightly larger. This meant he was feeling a bit embarrassed and angry.

“Hey, why are you making that face?” Marshmallow asked.

The person he was irritated with was none other than Encyclopedia, a book-shaped member of the Boclings.[1]

Encyclopedia flipped his pages. “How can I have a facial expression?”

“Why wouldn’t you have one?”

Being book-shaped, Encyclopedia indeed did not have facial expressions. However, an expert observer like Marshmallow could discern Encyclopedia’s expressions. Right now, Encyclopedia was looking at Marshmallow with eyes that seemed to say, ‘How pathetic!’

“Isn’t it a bit much to insist that a Bocling has facial expressions?” Encyclopedia asked.

“You just looked at me like I was pathetic.”

“That’s just your inference. You didn’t actually see my expression.” Encyclopedia provoked Marshmallow by flipping his pages repeatedly. “Isn’t it about time you admitted it, Marshmallow of Chul-Soo Land?”

“I’m not a Chul-Soo Lander!” Marshmallow’s head grew even larger and harder. His head, which was now tinted black, reflected his determination.

“You’re a Chul-Soo Lander. You’re excited right now,” Encyclopedia said.

“No, I’m not! I’m not excited at all!”

Marshmallow was excited for one reason: Kim Chul-Soo was on his way to this place.

“No, you’re excited right now.”

“I’m just a bit nervous about meeting a future competitor.”

“Oh, hey! There’s Chul-Soo!”

“Where?!” Marshmallow whipped his head around, but didn’t spot Chul-Soo.

Encyclopedia laughed loudly, his pages rustling. “Right, you’re definitely not a Chul-Soo Lander.”

***

Marshmallow introduced Encyclopedia to Jin-Hyeok. “Ahem. This is my old friend, Encyclopedia. He’s rude but knowledgeable.”

“I’m Encyclopedia, the online debater. Nice to meet you, Chul-Soo.”

Jin-Hyeok stared at Encyclopedia. It was his first time seeing a Bocling in real life. He said, “Is it okay if I record this?”

“Go ahead,” Encyclopedia nodded.

“Is it okay if your face gets recognized?”

“Sure.”

“People might recognize you and bother you. Is that okay?”

“Then I will just go sit on a bookshelf.”

“But people with keen eyes might still recognize you.”

“Nope. Even Marshmallow, who has pretty good eyes, can’t find me when I’m determined to hide on a bookshelf.”

Encyclopedia seemed to be proud of his hiding skill. If Jin-Hyeok were still socially inept, he would have just let this go, but being an Eltuber, Jin-Hyeok would not miss such an opportunity.

“Come on... Boclings aren’t top-tier Assassins or anything.” Jin-Hyeok provoked Encyclopedia.

“What? Are you looking down on Boclings?”

It was unclear why being unable to find a Bocling hiding on a bookshelf was considered disrespectful, but Encyclopedia was clearly offended.

“Then why don’t you go try hiding? I will try to find you.”

“Fine. Go outside and come back in five minutes. If you find me, I will let you doodle on my face.”

Boclings possessed vast wisdom. If someone wrote a question on their face, they would somehow provide an answer close to the truth. If they knew it, they would answer; if not, they would study to find out.

“But if you can’t find me, you have to crawl on all fours and bark like Thomas did,” Encyclopedia said.

***

Five minutes later, Encyclopedia trembled in disbelief.

“H-How did you find me?”

Jin-Hyeok was just as surprised as Encyclopedia. He could not detect the Bocling’s hiding place with his naked eye or with Broadcaster’s Insight. Apparently, when they slipped into a bookshelf, Boclings would truly become books and fall asleep. Their personalities would disappear, and they would be indistinguishable from regular books.

However, Jin-Hyeok had a method of his own.

“I kept the recording on before I left the room,” Jin-Hyeok said.

“Hey, that’s cheating.”

‘Did Encyclopedia not know that Eltubers can secretly film remotely?’ Jin-Hyeok scratched his head. “Maybe you’re not as smart as I thought...”

“You little...!”

Encyclopedia, seemingly enraged, spread his pages wide and clamped them on Jin-Hyeok’s head. It did not hurt since Encyclopedia was just paper without teeth.

Marshmallow laughed from the side. “Hey, not-so-smart Encyclopedia!”

Encyclopedia felt wronged. It wasn’t that he was unaware of Eltubers having such abilities. He knew very well and had felt safe because this was a top-ranked Eltuber’s house with high security. Marshmallow’s house was a place where his ‘My privacy is important’ barrier was always active.

‘When did he remove the barrier!’ Encyclopedia thought.

For someone who claimed not to be a Chul-Soo Lander, Marshmallow had dropped the barrier as soon as Chul-Soo was coming here. It felt like a betrayal to Encyclopedia. The Bocling realized he should have anticipated his friend’s behavior but had let his guard down.

“Why do you look so wronged?” Jin-Hyeok asked.

“Don’t tell me you can’t accept what just happened?” Marshmallow quipped from the side.

Feeling extremely wronged, Encyclopedia momentarily forgot that Chul-Soo had read his wronged facial expression.

***

Jin-Hyeok took a pen and wrote on Encyclopedia’s blank page.

[How could Kim Chul-Soo change the Demon Sealing Ceremony dimensional gate into a Spirit gate?]

Encyclopedia immediately provided an answer. Letters appeared automatically with a scratching sound.

[While the exact reason is unknown, we can make three guesses:

The universe-level Scenario influenced it.

The weapon Miri possesses a special ability.

Kim Chul-Soo has a soul with the same wavelength as that of Demons.]

The first two guesses were not difficult to make. Anyone could have thought of these without consulting Encyclopedia.

Jin-Hyeok had been thinking it could be one of these two.

“Based on the vast and deep well of my knowledge, I would say...”

“Is it the first or the second?”

“The third one is the most likely reason.”

Jin-Hyeok incredulously looked at Encyclopedia. ‘Based on what happened before... Maybe he really is less smart than I thought.’

From what he had seen over the internet, Encyclopedia seemed capable and wise, but the real-life version seemed different. Encyclopedia was a bit like a keyboard warrior.

“What does it mean to have a soul with the same wavelength as that of Demons?” Jin-Hyeok asked.

“It means having an existence value that can resonate with them.” Encyclopedia closed his pages, thought for a while, and then gave an easy example. “Humans can’t hear sounds above the audible frequency range, that is, above about 20,000 Hertz.”

Jin-Hyeok wanted to say something again. ‘But I can hear above 20,000 Hertz...’

It was not just Jin-Hyeok; high-ranking Eltubers were generally very sensitive to visual and auditory stimuli, possessing better eyesight and hearing than average people. As an ultra-high-level Eltuber, Jin-Hyeok could hear ultrasonic frequencies. It seemed Encyclopedia’s reputation was a bit inflated.

“Sounds about 20,000 Hertz exist, but humans can’t hear them. This concept is similar to that. The dimensional gate that appeared in the Demon Sealing Ceremony is located in Arvis, but it has a dimensional value that humans cannot access. We might express this as having different dimensional frequencies or values, though the terminology is not important...”

As the conversation continued, Jin-Hyeok had doubts about Encyclopedia’s abilities.

‘Is he just glossing over what he doesn’t know?’ Jin-Hyeok thought.

“Anyway, ordinary people cannot affect the dimensional gate, so the fact that you did suggests your existence has a dimensional value similar to that of Demons.”

“What does it mean to have a similar dimensional value?”

“It means you’re like a Demon or rather...” Encyclopedia cleared his throat. Marshmallow’s glare seemed particularly scary today. He could tolerate insults to himself but not to Chul-Soo. “It’s not an established theory, but sometimes, a very, very tainted soul might have the same dimensional value as the Demon’s dimensio—”

Jin-Hyeok slammed Encyclopedia shut. He did not need to hear more.

“No, I think you’re wrong. It’s probably related to the universe-level Scenario,” Jin-Hyeok said.

“That’s your opini—mmph!”

Suddenly forced shut, Encyclopedia struggled but could not overcome Jin-Hyeok’s strength. Jin-Hyeok had come here for wisdom but only heard strange things. So, he picked up the pen again and scribbled on Encyclopedia’s blank page.

“I, I won’t allow any more doodles...Ahhh!!”

[I (Encyclopedia) am actually quite stupid. Is that true?]

Encyclopedia was a Bocling who pursued the truth. A person was insignificant if they did not strive to find the truth. No matter how much one studied, there was always more unknown than known in the world, and the more one knew, the humbler one became. Encyclopedia’s principle was that even sages had to be foolish before the countless truths of the world.

[That is correct.]

Encyclopedia hoped that his humility as a knowledgeable being would be widely spread through the livestream. After all, everyone had to be humble before the truth.

“Encyclopedia seems to be more overhyped than I thought,” Jin-Hyeok said.

Instead of Humble Encyclopedia, Overhyped Encyclopedia became more widely known in the world.

***

Oliver III, the Pope of the Helen Empire, praised and encouraged the Priests and Paladins who had participated in the Demon Sealing Ceremony. “Your sincere prayers and faith have caused a miracle. This holy war of ours will be recorded and passed down to future generations.”

Many people criticized the Papacy.

-Wasn’t it Chul-Soo who did it?

-They completely left out Chul-Soo!

-For a Pope, he sure lacks conscience lol.

While he received quite a bit of criticism, the Pope had no choice. The Demon Sealing Ceremony had to be recorded as an achievement of the Priests and Paladins. He foresaw that if they officially recorded that it was Chul-Soo, who had never properly demonstrated any faith, who had the greatest impact on the Demon Sealing Ceremony, it could shake the foundation of the Holy Empire of Helen. Moreover, while there could be various protests now, everything would eventually return to its proper place.

Garcia, the head of the Feyler Family, personally invited Jin-Hyeok. “I have something to discuss.”

Garcia was not interested in the Pope’s public commendation of gifts. Participating in the Demon Sealing Ceremony was simply a natural duty of a Priest or a Paladin. He applied the same standard to himself and others.

“Sir Chul-Soo, have you ever considered becoming a Priest or a Paladin?”

[Would you like to change your Job to the Special Job ?Heir of Feyler??]

1. The name boclings, also known by their scientific name Homo biblios, comes from the Old English words for book + person. ☜