Chapter 16: Super Rookie
Updating the world record.
Of course, it wasn't an easy task.
Plenty of Super Rookies had stepped up to the challenge.
But even they had failed ninety-nine times out of a hundred.
The people who already held records were super rookies just like them, so failure remained extremely likely.
On top of that, Kim Minwoo wasn't aiming for some modest record update like the other Super Rookies.
Level 1 solo clear.
Even Isabella had only pulled it off after reaching level 49, and he was challenging it at level 1?
It was insane.
France, who possessed Isabella, was the first to sneer.
Japan soon followed with snickers.
China mocked outright.
America burst into belly laughs.
At best, he'd clear up to the midpoint and then flee with his pants down.
That was just common sense.
It was bound to fail anyway.
Naturally, aside from his home country of Korea, there wasn't much interest. Why bother with something that was guaranteed to flop? You needed some expectation to even care.
At most, a tiny handful of foreign reporters visited Korea.
Why?
So they could write articles trash-talking Korea the instant he failed.
World record? Japan's little brother Korea is still a long way off!
Foolish challenge! Come back after eating a bit more!
Stuff like that.
But…
—Holy shit…!
—So, sono ba kana!
It was unbelievable.
That unbelievable thing was unfolding right before their eyes.
For something like this to happen in Korea, an awakener weakling of a nation!
Naturally, the foreign reporters' phones started lighting up.
Thousands of text bombs poured in. From their networks, families, friends, even neighborhood folks.
The gist of the questions was the same.
Is this for real?
‘It's not like this is a hidden camera prank!’
While the foreign reporters gaped, the Korean reporters from the waiting area swarmed toward Kim Minwoo.
“Mr. Kim! Mr. Kim! Can I ask a question?”
“Hey, move it!”
“You move!”
Every reporter was desperate for even a single interview line. Right now, Kim Minwoo's value had skyrocketed past the heavens and was about to pierce the universe. By tomorrow morning, the whole world would be in an uproar.
“Take it easy with the questions. I'll answer them.”
Kim Minwoo smiled brightly.
“You've set a new world record—what are your thoughts?”
“I'm stunned, but also thrilled. I got a bit lucky too. I found a hidden element and cleared it more easily than expected.”
“Was there something like that in this tomb?”
“Think about what my class is.”
“Ah…”
The reporters nodded as if it made sense. Given that he was presumed to have a high-grade achievement, it wasn't strange if he'd discovered a hidden route in the tomb that aided the clear.
“There were rumors your achievement grade is S—is that true?”
“Yes, it is.”
The reporters' eyes gleamed.
An awakener with an S-grade achievement was called a Super Rookie.
This was the official confirmation that Kim Minwoo was a Super Rookie.
Well…
If it had been A or B-grade, setting a world record would've been impossible in the first place. The gap between S and the rest was that vast.
Just then…
One foreign reporter shot his hand up.
“Uh… Tanaka from Japan here. So, you're saying the record happened because you got lucky?”
His pronunciation was a bit off, but the intent was clear. The surrounding reporters glared at the Japanese reporter with axe-like eyes.
As the mood turned hostile…
Minwoo chuckled and replied.
“Well, does that mean Isabella was even less skilled than some lucky level 1 scrub?”
Suddenly dragged into it with France, the Japanese reporter's eyes darted around.
Soon, sweating bullets, he answered.
“Uh… My Korean's bad, so I didn't quite catch that. I, I'll withdraw the question.”
The Korean reporters let out satisfied snickers at the Japanese reporter sinking quietly.
“You must all be curious. What achievement skill made the clear so smooth.”
Of course.
But they hesitated to ask outright because Kim Minwoo's status had changed dramatically from before.
Before, revealing a skill was just showmanship.
Now, because top-tier awakeners were treated as national strategic assets, revealing a skill could be regarded as leaking classified information.
“I'll ease some of that curiosity today.”
Minwoo said.
The moment he snapped his fingers…
[300 Skeletons are summoned!]
A horde of skeletons materialized en masse in front of the stage.
Murmurs rippled through the crowd!
“H-How many is that?”
“Over three hundred at a glance…”
“Weren't there supposed to be only about a hundred fifty, like the Sword Sage said?!”
On top of that, the skeletons equipped the gear pouring from the ring one after another.
The armed skeletons lined up in perfect ranks and files.
“Could that massive skeleton summon be related to your S-grade skill?”
“Something like that.”
The reporters nodded in understanding. Skeletons might be weaker than an average adult male, but with gear and numbers, it was a different story.
This rich young master had poured over 200 million per skeleton soldier into arming them.
Plus, wasn't Kim Minwoo acknowledged by the Sword Sage himself as a prodigy?
A horde of skeleton soldiers.
A hidden route found in the tomb.
Exceptional swordsmanship.
And Ilsung's support to top it off—that explained the world record.
Now it made sense how he'd cleared the gate at level 1. Once he took down the first wave like that, his levels would've shot up.
Even so, it was still incredible. Just obtaining an S-grade skillbook proved his skill.
Click!
Cameras madly snapped shots of the solemnly arrayed skeleton soldiers.
* * *
Gulp, gulp!
Thud!
A canned beer slammed hard onto the table.
“Ugh, fuck.”
Seo Yerim tore into a squid leg savagely, dismantling it.
Crunch crunch.
She dumped a handful of salt-coated almonds into her mouth.
Crunch crunch.
She ground the almonds to dust, chewing viciously.
“That fucking bastard! How the hell does he wield a sword that well!”
People have desires.
But they also have the self-control to hold back for their goals.
Tough chicken breast over tasty food.
A single spar over fun entertainment.
Reviewing training over restful relaxation.
Seo Yerim had given up much for the sword.
She'd devoted over half her life to it and earned the moniker Sword Sage.
Thus,
That title was her life, her everything.
And it had been utterly denied.
By that goddamn wastrel, no less.
Her curses exploded naturally.
She'd been kicked off the live broadcast.
Total humiliation.
By tomorrow morning, there'd probably be hundreds of articles roasting her.
That was fine, though.
She could just ignore the media.
But what really, really pissed her off was…
That she couldn't inwardly deny Kim Minwoo's words.
Damn it all, that guy really did wield the sword well.
She'd taken a straight fastball of brutal truth to the face.
So…
That line? That line? That line? That line? That line? That line? That line?
His voice looped endlessly like a broken tape recorder.
Under the apocalyptic stress, all her self-control crumbled in an instant.
Binge eating, again.
Just then…
—Whoa, insane!
—He actually did it!
—He cleared it! He cleared it!
Cheers erupted from the instructors' lounge. Deep into the night, what were they so hyped about?
Obvious.
An annoying face flashed by.
‘Fuck…’
With an A-rank awakener's brute strength, the beer can crumpled in one squeeze.
Pffft!
Beer sprayed like fireworks over her head.
“Ahh!”
Nothing was going right!
She wiped her hair with a towel, her gaze shifting to her smartphone.
Seo Yerim was in an undisciplined state right now.
With her head slightly cooled by the beer shower, holding back her curiosity was impossible.
‘He actually did it? That?’
She hadn't declared it impossible out of mere jealousy. It truly was impossible.
… But how the hell did he clear it?
“… I'm just checking a little.”
How could any awakener resist? Muttering an excuse to herself, she opened her phone's news feed.
[(Breaking News!) Kim Minwoo Lights Up Korea! World Record Shattered!]
[(Breaking News!) 40 Hours, 23 Minutes, 32 Seconds! The World's Greatest Talent, a Necromancer, is Born!]
“… No way.”
Forty hours?
That was nearly eight hours faster than Isabella at level 49.
Beyond the headlines, what about public opinion?
She hurriedly switched to NewTube.
National pride videos were already surpassing a million views within five minutes of upload.
[K-Awakener Kim Minwoo Causes a Scene! Why Isabella Kneels Before the Necromancer's Might and France Plunges into Silent Chaos?!]
[Korea Escapes Awakener Weakling Status? K-Awakener Kim Minwoo's Record Smash! Awakeners Worldwide Stunned by His Talent!]
[Korea’s Star and Hope, Kim Minwoo! Why Foreign Media Drool in Shock at His Heroic Feat?! Real-Time Footage Attached!]
Channels she subscribed to because they often featured her grandfather.
Usually, these overdose-nationalism vids split opinion half-and-half.
There were always parts that even viewers found too much.
Even videos defending her grandfather, the Sword Sage, got about 80% likes to 20% dislikes.
But now…
Likes: 999,832
Dislikes: 1,773
Korea was boiling over.
The comments were the same.
—Is this real life? For real, lol. Give me that national-pride overdose!
—Today, even if the uploader overworks to death, it's innocent lol
—40 hours blew my mind lol Frenchies tried every dirty trick and still sank immediately lol
—Isabella bubble bursts lol Now we know France's level lol That’s their top awakener? lol
—Saw the Japanese reporter get one-shot? Lmao
—That’s right—this is Korea’s spicy flavor, you bastards, lol!
Hot reactions from the public.
Even GateNet, the awakener community, was the same.
[Kim Minwoo Just Hype?]
[Recommendations: 123,423]
Seo Yerim's eyes sharpened as she clicked the trending post.
—Unbelievable, you bastards, lol!
↳ Lmao All the Kim Minwoo haters stunned lol
↳ No one’s still doubting Kim Minwoo, right? Lmao.
Her brows furrowed hard at that. Shattering the world record was undeniably impressive.
The hot reactions were natural, perhaps.
But even so.
It was that Kim Minwoo.
Did it make sense for public opinion to be this good?
Tap tap.
Tap tap tap.
Her fingers drummed on the phone.
[Why's public opinion like this?]
[Nick: Anonymous]
(An orangutan scratching its head illustration)
—Kim Minwoo's amazing, sure, but is it worth this much? Forgot he's a wastrel? Even Sword Sage didn't get this reaction;
↳ Grandpa already showed everything he had, Kim Minwoo's fresh and you're comparing? lol
↳ For real lol OP has no clue. Korea's last Super Rookie was 7 years ago lol
↳… So what?
↳ Every time a decent awakener shows up, they get snatched, pushed around—that's daily Korea lol Kim Minwoo showed up in that mess lol
↳ But he's a total wastrel. Wasn't everyone hating him?
↳ Nah, they weren't? Committed a felony? Red line? Nah lol What's that got to do?
↳ Seriously, OP keeps stirring shit on a good day. Are they secretly an anti-fan or what?
Soon, dislike bombs rained down on the post.
[Dislikes: 3,733]
It shot up to #8 worst in an instant. She scanned the worst-ranked posts.
[1. Getting this excited just shows their level. Their Sword Sage is from a weakling nation, lol.]
[Dislikes: 101,231]
[2. Awakening powerhouses pop Super Rookies like snacks and they make a fuss lol ]
[Dislikes: 78,745]
[8. Why's public opinion like this?]
[Dislikes: 3,842]
“…”
In the meantime, the dislikes had climbed nearly a hundred more. She felt like a one-eyed man in the land of the blind.
Her mood soured at the skyrocketing dislikes, so she exited GateNet. Meanwhile, the hype only intensified.