The Pride of Korea

Of course, there was no such thing. Tae-hyun killed, killed, and killed again. Even the commentators, who had initially been cheering him on with excitement, were starting to grow flustered.

'A-At this point, shouldn't he slow down the pace a bit? The round already seems over. Does he have some kind of personal grudge?'

'Well, I did hear he had some trouble with the Beijing Fighters players back in Pan-On 1...'

'But didn't Player Kim Tae-hyun just win that? I heard their substitute players were completely pulverized.'

Who holds a grudge after winning?

A battle of pride between powerhouses was always fierce. It wasn't just a matter of a single victory; it was a clash to determine who was truly the best! In such a battle, a mundane victory was never enough. It had to be an overwhelming, crushing defeat!

"Team KL! They are driving them into a corner, as if declaring they are the only ones worthy of the Pan-On League throne!"

While the commentators and fans went wild with excitement, Tae-hyun pushed even harder. He had stacked so many kill buffs that even if all five opponents attacked him simultaneously, they wouldn't be able to turn the tables! Yet, Tae-hyun remained vigilant until the very end, utterly obliterating his enemies to ensure they couldn't even step out of their respawn point.

As soon as the match concluded, several times more interview requests flooded in than usual. It was a natural phenomenon, considering both teams possessed immense popularity. A few Chinese reporters looked utterly soul-crushed. What on earth was that match?!

“Player Kim Tae-hyun! We're curious about your thoughts on this match. How did it feel to face the Beijing Fighters?”

“I'm glad we had a good match. The Beijing Fighters players are all incredibly strong, so I was tense throughout the entire game, but I'm happy we won.”

'Tsk. How boring.'

'Seriously, he doesn't leave a single opening.'

Reporters logged in from all over the world grumbled inwardly. Among journalists, Tae-hyun was known as an "Iron Wall." He was a player whose self-management was so thorough that not even a single needle could pierce through! Normally, after a match, whether they won or lost, players would let their guard down, leading to all sorts of entertaining interviews. From a player's perspective, a slip of the tongue would be embarrassing or troublesome, but for reporters, there was nothing better!

Even if he didn't go as far as saying, 'The Beijing Fighters were so pathetic I wanted to die,' they at least wanted to hear a few sharp words about their miserable performance! However, they couldn't just skip the interview, nor could they ask provocative questions. If they didn't interview Kim Tae-hyun, who else would they interview? He was the elite of the elite, essentially the poster boy of Pan-On.

On top ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠of that, fitting for a world-class player, his memory was exceptionally sharp, and he retaliated thoroughly if anyone dared to ask a provocative question. Once, a reporter had asked, “Honestly, unlike the other players, Player Lee Da-bi of Team KL is a Merchant. Doesn't that mean she doesn't deserve to be on the team?” Upon hearing that, Tae-hyun paused, checked the reporter's media company, verified their country, and immediately shut down the interview.

"As long as that person is here, I will not be doing any more interviews. Do as you please."

...?!?! The other reporters had gasped in horror, glaring at the offending reporter as if they wanted to murder him.

"Are you out of your mind?!"

"Do you want to get blacklisted? Go apologize and bring him back right now!"

"Come on, a question like this in an interview is..."

"You absolute lunatic! Do you want us to get cut off because of you? Go right now! Where do you think you're going to get buried, you bastard?!"

Having witnessed such an incident, the reporters couldn't afford to act recklessly. He was truly a flawless, perfect player!

...But there was always a loophole in everything. The reporters' eyes gleamed as they spotted Cain walking past in the background.

“Player Cain! We're curious about your thoughts on the match against the Beijing Fighters!”

“Ah. Wait, a sec—”

“Uh, I don't really know.”

“What do you mean by 'you don't really know'?!”

“I mean, I still don't really get what kind of strategy the Beijing Fighters were trying to pull... It's just baffling and confusing...”

As Cain answered with a dazed expression, the reporters eagerly put their own spin on his words.

“So you're saying you have no idea what the Beijing Fighters were thinking?”

“That they came out with some bizarre, unheard-of strategy?”

“That their performance was shameful and embarrassing for a team participating in the First Division? And that their coach seems to have lost his mind?”

“N-No, I didn't say all that?!”

Were these reporters actually his anti-fans?!

The aftermath of the match was explosive. While the commentators chose their words carefully and Team KL fans simply rejoiced in their victory, everyone else was in an uproar. Furious Beijing Fighters fans flooded the community boards with posts like, “Did that trash coach take a bribe?! This is why you can't trust foreigners!”

Meanwhile, fans of the teams that had previously lost to the Beijing Fighters reacted with indignation: “Wait, why didn't they play like absolute garbage when they faced us?!”

And Chairman Yoo and Lee Se-yeon simultaneously clutched the backs of their necks in sheer frustration.

"Those—those crazy bastards must have taken a bribe!"

"They should have been fighting with everything they had, so why couldn't they even slow him down and just lost like that?!"

They had hoped to gather some valuable information by watching the Beijing Fighters clash with Tae-hyun, but because they had been so utterly and miserably crushed, there was absolutely nothing to be gained.

'Hmm. Now that I think about it, maybe the opposing team just had internal issues.'

Although the people on the broadcast praised the match against the Beijing Fighters to the high heavens, Tae-hyun himself hadn't felt much excitement. He had simply been tense throughout the fight because he couldn't figure out what his opponents were trying to do.

'A massive gaming organization is bound to have internal political issues.'

The Beijing Fighters had achieved success through various investments, and their initial momentum had been great, so they should have been running smoothly... but the world didn't always operate on logic. They had to walk on eggshells around investors, appease the parent company, and cater to the whims of the newly appointed president...

“As expected, I think the reason Player Kim Tae-hyun played so passionately was for the pride of Korea! It was practically a national match, after all!”

“?”

Huh? Tae-hyun blinked at Lecia's words. Did I really play with that in mind? Honestly, if there was any match in the Pan-On League where ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠he would play with his pride on the line, it would be against the Yuseong Gaming Team...

However, Cain was deeply moved by her words. 'That... that's so cool!' Raising the nation's prestige through gaming! By Cain's standards, it was an incredibly cool sentiment. Having previously revealed on a broadcast how he lived, only to be bombarded by fans asking, 'Are you even human?!' and 'Does Kim Tae-hyun have dirt on you?!', Cain opened his mouth, desperate to redeem himself.

“Exactly! That's why Tae-hyun gave it his all! Putting Korea's pride on the line!”

'I did good, right?'

Of course, Tae-hyun reacted instantly.

Even though he scolded Cain, the people around them already had deeply moved expressions on their faces.

“As expected of Player Kim Tae-hyun...!”

“We're putting all our trust in you, Player Kim Tae-hyun! Please show us the Korean team winning the championship!”

“Ah. Yes...”

Tae-hyun replied, looking at the player who had spoken. At his gaze, Lecia pumped her fist in her mind.

'I made an impression! He definitely liked my question!'

In her head, she was already imagining their wedding and a happy family.

But Tae-hyun was thinking:

'She seems like the type who'll piss me off just like Cain does. I should avoid her.'

It felt like they had only been apart for a short while, yet Yu Ji-soo's face looked completely gaunt.

“Se... Senior... congratulations on your victory...”

“Uh, no. I don't think that's what's important right now.”

“The Tyrum Hunters... they... make me... so... incredibly pissed off...”

“How many Cains on the scale?”

“About... 0.5 Cains...”

“My god...!”

Tae-hyun was horrified. To think it was that severe!

“No matter how I look at it, shouldn't you change your class?”

“But it's such a waste of all the effort I've put in so far...”

“Excuse me. I'm standing right here...”

Cain looked like he was on the verge of tears.

In the meantime, several Tyrum Hunters returned to the camp.

“Ah! Your Majesty! It is an honor to meet you like this!”

“?”

Tae-hyun was puzzled by the sudden warm welcome. Although he was someone who received various bonuses when dealing with NPCs, the Tyrum Hunters were fundamentally narrow-minded and never forgot a grudge. They were definitely not the type of people to welcome anyone so cordially!

“We heard that Your Majesty stepped forward for the sake of the Salz Kingdom!”

“As expected of someone from Tyrum...!”

Clap, clap, clap, clap!

If a player who started in Tyrum left the city, they were usually branded as a traitor. But now that this player was incredibly successful, the hunters flipped their attitude like a spinning coin!

“What did I do for you?”

“Your Majesty, you are humble to a fault...! Did you not reclaim the mines for us?”

“Ah...”

Tae-hyun realized what they were talking about. In order to gather materials to repair the Sky Castle, he had plundered... no, conquered the mines held by the Guild Alliance and the Midas Guild!

The excuse he had used back then was: 'Wait, this is Salz Kingdom territory, so why are guys from another kingdom occupying it?!'

Thanks to Tae-hyun sweeping through, the soldiers stationed by the two guilds had vanished completely... and the nobles of the Salz Kingdom had thought, 'Oh? The King of Atali did this for us? To show us such kindness... we are deeply moved!' and quickly reoccupied the mines.

Though they had essentially been slapped in the face, the two guilds were too busy fighting each other to have any leeway to mess with the Salz Kingdom nobles!

'Wow. I really don't want to meet them!'