Chapter 45
Chapter 45
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 45
Chapter Title: Kaisha's Dramatic Emergence
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A single person stood atop the corpse of a dead monster, holding an umbrella.
The durability must not have been enough to withstand the skills, as the long umbrella in her hand was completely tattered.
Her high ponytail of black hair was slightly disheveled.
As she undid her hair tie and lifted her head to survey her surroundings, the scene was so cinematic that several onlookers unwittingly held their breath.
Someone broke the silence with a shout.
"Is that Kaisha?!"
Gasp.
That one remark sparked a sudden realization, and the crowd around them buzzed with excitement.
It was far too fitting a guess.
Come to think of it, the way she used her skills was exactly like Kaisha.
People started murmuring guesses about her identity, and soon one by one, they erupted into cheers.
Waaaaah—!!
"!"
Kaisha's eyes widened in surprise, but she quickly composed herself with a relaxed smile, and the cheers grew even louder.
Kaisha!
Kaisha has appeared!!
The users—no, the Awakeners—welcomed Kaisha's arrival with fervor.
Of course, mixed in with those cheers was plenty of bootlicking from Awakeners eager to impress their future Guild Master.
Kaisha was here.
Tap.
The woman presumed to be Kaisha stepped down from the dead monster.
Her expression was calm.
Her nonchalant attitude and the skills she had just demonstrated were as good as a full admission of her identity.
"Uwaaaah!! Guild Master!!"
Once her identity was all but confirmed, every Fullminak guild member in the area rushed toward her.
"？!"
Maya pushed through the crowd and threw her arms around Kaisha.
She hugged her tight!
"Hueeng! Where have you been? You finally show up! I thought I'd never see you again!"
Kali nodded vigorously, wiping away what were almost real tears.
"It's okay. We're good now."
Surrounded tightly by her guild members like a human prison, Ga-hyun looked a bit awkward.
These were people she'd never met in real life, yet somehow it didn't feel strange at all.
"Why didn't you answer our calls?!"
The impromptu interrogation began immediately.
"My phone got smashed."
"Why'd your phone get smashed?!"
"Well, there were circumstances..."
"Then why'd you only show up now?!"
"I was bedridden."
"Didn't you see the news?!"
"I was really sick the whole time—throwing up nonstop, hooked up to IVs, stuck in bed unable to move."
Kaisha held out her wrist.
Eek.
The guild members gasped in unison at the red needle marks on her wrist.
"Oh my god."
"Guild Master, you were really ill."
"Your wrist is so pretty."
Huh?
There was a weird comment mixed in, but before Ga-hyun or anyone around could react, another question followed.
"Kaisha-nim, why'd you log out right after beating the Demon King?"
"Oh, that."
Ga-hyun looked up at the guild member who asked and gave a simple answer.
"Mom yanked the cord."
Ah, I see.
Sighs and understanding washed over the guild members' faces.
"She was mad about my resignation."
Oof.
The infamous Mom Critical.
No one there had escaped the merciless tyranny of the household ruler.
It was the moment everything they'd been dying to know clicked perfectly into place.
* * *
At that very moment.
Ding!
Gilgamesh, who had been summoned by the bigwigs in broadcasting and was in the middle of a conversation, received a text.
"......"
Hoseong quietly curled the corner of his mouth as he read it.
She's finally emerged.
Kaisha's a woman, huh.
Hoseong barely suppressed the urge to jump up and do a tap dance, instead flashing a polite yet authoritative smile at the higher-ups.
Hoseong was the one slacking off, but it was the big shots who were watching him nervously.
The heart-pounding footage of Bipa's game play—more intense than any war movie—and the surreal superpowers that could actually be used in reality.
To ordinary eyes, Awakeners appeared as untouchable military supermen.
Dealing with people who wielded superpowers? You had to tread carefully.
Hoseong smoothly continued.
"You've all made a truly wise choice gathering here. It's reassuring to see so many sharp elders like you."
The mood lightened.
These people who had called Hoseong right after the incident were ones with exceptional insight and decisiveness.
"The future of Korea is bright."
The group smiled pleasantly at Hoseong's words.
In this new wave sweeping in,
The God of Money.
Hoseong was promising wealth and power to those who had summoned him.
* * *
#10 The Hunters' Era
Kaisha's appearance—more dramatic than any movie—turned the world upside down.
The second rampage had been stabilized.
The media covered it all day, but the real details were on the internet.
Especially Gotgold.
["GOOOOOOOAL!!"]
["Whoa, insane! This is straight-up legendary!!"]
["Kaisha has appeared!! The real Kaisha, not some fake!!"]
["Kaisha's a girl!!"]
["Unbelievably, the real-life Kaisha is a woman! Whoa, legendary. Never dreamed our Guild Master's shit intuition would nail it."]
["SCREAM—!!!"]
News of Kaisha's emergence spread like wildfire via Gotgold's live stream and other streamers.
Naturally, Gotgold's broadcast had the highest views.
This was the edited version.
["With Kaisha's appearance, all the controversies come to an end."]
["Ugh, I wanted to beat the shit out of those Kaisha imposters. Feels so good now. The real Kaisha's a woman, you netkama bastards."]
["And the sync rate is insane."]
["I was shocked. Didn't notice on-site, but on camera, her vibe matches the game perfectly."]
["You can practically see Fullminak's stock skyrocketing."]
["This is what we call mooning."]
The hosts shrank to a corner of the screen, filling it with footage of Kaisha's entrance.
Kaisha's entrance.
Back during the live stream, the chat had exploded so hard you couldn't even read the comments.
Long before the on-site Awakeners guessed "Is that Kaisha?", the internet hive mind had already pegged her identity.
Someone had shouted "Kaisha?!" in comments almost the instant she appeared.
["Sadly, no interview with busy Kaisha-nim."]
["Fullminak guild members wouldn't give us an inch. Fresh off a family reunion, can't blame 'em."]
["Jealous. A guild that owns Kaisha."]
The video played.
Kaisha leaped high, charging straight into the monster-infested center of the site.
Insane jumping power that shattered human limits.
The close-up broadcast feed captured her movements even clearer than on-site.
["Witnessing Kaisha's explosive cool entrance in real life."]
["Swinging that umbrella like Excalibur—that insane dignity. Gotta be Kaisha."]
The connecting motions were artistic.
["Hard to see in daylight, but squint and you catch the green aura."]
["Whoa, this is reality?"]
["Amazing Korea!"]
["Overseas gates are breaking out too—chaos everywhere. Seems some famous gamers are stepping up there."]
["Praying for a Bipa system World League soon."]
In the video, Kaisha bashed monsters with her umbrella.
Smooth, refreshing play.
Even someone clueless about games couldn't look away from the mesmerizing real footage.
["Why's this hit so hard."]
["Damn. Bipa's this epic? Me too."]
["Lucky you for discovering it now. Please check out our past siege war videos too."]
All the massive Goldbunker archives were exploding in views, surging like mad.
That was why the hosts brimmed with energy.
Money was pouring in.
["Just to be clear: you can't kill monsters by swinging an umbrella."]
["Hit a monster with an umbrella and it'll rip you apart pissed off. Kids especially—super dangerous, don't try this at home."]
As the audience expanded to the whole nation, Goldbunker started discussing more ethical precautions internally.
The prestige of a channel that hit it big from game streaming.
["Overseas, they're calling these Awakeners 'Hunters.' Domestic media's starting to pick it up too."]
["Means monster hunters, right?"]
["Exactly. Call us Hunters from now on."]
["Gamers who sunk their lives into games ascending to real-life Hunters—history in the making."]
A historic moment, indeed.
The attention dwarfed anything from when it was "just a game."
With unprecedented gate incidents nationwide—worldwide—spotlight fell on the Hunters resolving them firsthand. Some Hunters were hitting celebrity-level fame.
The dawn of the Hunter era.
* * *
Kaisha completely monopolized the spotlight as the hero of this second raid.
The flustered media from the first raid now showered her with even more proper attention than Dart had gotten.
Dart, hearing the news, grew more cautious about doxxing.
Meanwhile, mentally shattered Dart holed up at home, ignoring the second raid entirely—until he caught wind of Kaisha's appearance and scowled.
Late afternoon, after sleeping it off.
"......"
Skimming phone notifications, he saw Binu had spammed KakaoTalk with photos and videos in a frenzy.
From a glance, something about Kaisha showing up.
Whatever.
He'd been mildly curious about Kaisha at first, but all the imposters killed his interest.
Plus, he had his own problems now.
Dart—Isa Hyeok—rose messily from bed, scowling in stress as he raked back his hair.
"Fuck......"
The creepy cameras swarming his doorstep too.
He could ditch the place, but thinking of those bastards doxxing and dragging his info made his head spin.
Rising, Dart—no, Sa-hyeok—muttered curses and grabbed his phone.
He fumbled it open to KakaoTalk by accident.
Irritated, Sa-hyeok went to swipe it away—then froze.
[Binu: Still sleeping?]
[Binu: Kaisha showed at second site—total chaos rn]
[Binu: (photo)]
The photo grabbed him. But Binu's first one was too far; no clear face.
The tied hair, though.
"!"
Shock snapped Sa-hyeok awake. He scrolled down frantically.
No close-up stills from site, but a dedicated Kaisha video.
Kaisha—a woman.
Unbelievable. Sa-hyeok's heart raced.
He hit play. Amid straight-cam clamor, the second raid footage rolled.
Sa-hyeok's eyes widened.
No doubt—this was Kaisha. Her fighting style screamed it.
The woman charging wildly swung her umbrella forward.
Crash—!!
That blow shattered every window in a building—but did she almost level it?
She paused,
Then relief close-up filled the screen.
"!!"
Sa-hyeok's heart plummeted—thud!
Unaware he'd stopped breathing, he gaped.
In the video, Kaisha was swarmed by joyous Fullminak guild members.
Shaky focus steadied, zooming on her face.
Thump-thump-thump.
His heartbeat accelerated.
Kaisha's real face matched her character avatar unbelievably.
The vibe was pure Kaisha.
"......"
Not some fake—for the first time seeing the real deal, Sa-hyeok's eyes shook wide.
His heart pounded like mad.