The Subconscious Doesn't Lie
“...I still don't quite get it, but that was a compliment, right?”
“Yeah. I told you, it's a compliment.”
“No matter how much I think about it, comparing us to a guild of beggars doesn't sound like a compliment...”
“Ah, that's only because you've never read wuxia novels! You should read one! They're portrayed as incredibly cool!”
As Tae-hyun spoke, he couldn't help but wonder why he was defending the Beggars' Sect so passionately in the first place.
“Anyway, I get it.”
“Good. Thanks for appreciating the greatness of the Beggars' Sect.”
“...And if I ever need help, I'll let you know. Because...”
“Because it's mutually beneficial. Right?”
“Exactly!”
Lee Da-bi smiled warmly, grabbing Tae-hyun's hand and shaking it up and down. This was the most pleasant thing that had happened to her recently. To be recognized as an equal partner who mutually valued each other.
“If you ever need help, Tae-hyun, just say the word. Though I'm not sure if you ever will.”
“No, actually, I need a lot of help.”
“...?”
Lee Da-bi tilted her head. Tae-hyun needing help? It was hard to picture. Out of everyone she knew, he was the undisputed number one person who seemed like he would survive perfectly fine on his own.
Everything about him—from the car he drove to the clothes he wore and his every gesture—exuded wealth. It was the relaxed, effortless confidence that only the truly rich possessed.
I bet when he cooks instant ramen, he doesn't just eat the cheap basic stuff—he probably cooks premium gourmet ramen and adds eggs and cheese!
Her idea of a rich person's life was slightly bizarre, but there was no way for Tae-hyun to know that.
“What kind of help?”
“Well, this is a bit embarrassing...”
“??”
As Tae-hyun hesitated, Lee Da-bi grew even more curious. What on earth could make him hesitate like this? What kind of favor was it?
“Could you have your guild members leave some hate comments on Lee Se-yeon's videos?”
“...Of course not!”
“Plague-cleansing soup! Come and get it! I'm logging off in an hour. Wait. Eat it right here.”
Tae-hyun, back online, was serving various dishes made with the plague-curing water in his territory. Naturally, they were all made using his Abnormal Cooking skill!
Thanks to that, the players eating them were gagging and retching.
“Gwahhh! *Gag*!”
Regardless of their suffering, Tae-hyun focused entirely on his skill, experimenting with different recipes.
*Grab!*
“!!”
Tae-hyun grabbed a player's wrist. The chef player, who had just received a bowl of soup from Tae-hyun, looked at him in panic.
“What do you think you're doing?”
“Huh? Oh, I was just going to add some spices to this...”
Players without cooking skills had no choice but to force it down, but this player was a chef. He could easily re-cook it to make it taste decent. However, if he did that, the cooking skill experience Tae-hyun received would plummet.
“Are you saying my cooking tastes bad?”
“No, it's not that...”
The chef player couldn't bring himself to say, “Your food tastes like absolute garbage!”
“Then eat it! Eat it! Down it in one go!”
“*Choke*, *cough*, *wheeze*...”
Watching the player suffer, Cain shook his head. Tae-hyun truly never lost his original intention!
If Cain had reached Tae-hyun's level, he would have taken it easy or at least cared a little about how others perceived him. But Tae-hyun had none of that. He was consistent day and night!
“Hello!”
“Oh, what took you so long?”
“I am here! I was just a bit late because I rode my bicycle!”
“Why did you ride a bicycle?”
“To save on transit fare!”
“...R-Right...”
Cain, overwhelmed by Lee Da-bi's sheer frugality, could only nod. There was nothing he could say to someone who rode a bike just to save on transit fare.
“More importantly, I heard you're confirmed to participate?”
“Did you hear that from Kim Tae-hyun? Yeah.”
“And that your real name is Kim Deok-su...”
“…….”
Tae-hyun was certainly generous with sharing minor personal details Cain would have preferred to keep private! Still, Cain held his tongue. It was thanks to Tae-hyun that he was able to enter the tournament in the first place. Thinking of that, he could tolerate this much with a smile.
“Also, that you look really young in real life, like a younger brother...”
“Seriously, what on earth has that jerk been telling people?!”
Cain finally exploded! Just then, he saw Tae-hyun returning after wrapping up his “business.” Cain called out to him.
“Hey!”
“……?”
“You...”
But the moment he was about to complain, Cain's reason kicked in. He had received far too much from Tae-hyun this time to start an argument.
“T-Thanks.”
“Yeah. You should be grateful.”
“…….”
Lee Da-bi watched their exchange with great amusement.
“I've sold enough, so let's move fast. We need to go to the Erangs Kingdom to get the quest reward from that demon bastard.”
“Hey, but aren't we going to practice for the arena?”
At Cain's natural question, Tae-hyun responded with a look that said, “What kind of nonsense is this guy spouting?” Cain instantly felt embarrassed.
“W-Why are you looking at me like that?”
“Why would we need to practice for something so trivial?”
“It is a big deal! It's a huge deal, you jerk!”
To Tae-hyun, PvP and the arena were as natural as breathing. There was absolutely no need to start practicing now. But Cain was not a monster like Tae-hyun. With such a major tournament ahead, practice was essential. Besides, calling this tournament “not a big deal”?
Do you have any idea how massive this tournament is?!
Countless people were focusing on this event. Not just Koreans, but players from all over the world. If they messed up, they could be humiliated on a global scale! It was only natural for Cain to be anxious.
“What if we make a mistake and embarrass ourselves in front of everyone?!”
“It's fine.”
“What do you mean it's fine?”
“Even if I make a mistake, I'm too popular to get hate.”
“…….”
“On the other hand, if you mess up, you're going to get absolutely roasted.”
Tae-hyun's assessment of the situation was annoyingly accurate! It was true. In terms of popularity, Cain and Tae-hyun were in entirely different leagues. If Lee Se-yeon or Tae-hyun made a mistake, the public reaction would be, “Well, they're only human, they can make mistakes.” But if Cain messed up?
The reactions would range from “Why is that trash player even on the team?” to “Did he bribe the broadcasting station?!”
“L-Let's practice! Let's practice! We need to build some chemistry!”
“Just hanging around me will be plenty of practice. You want to practice? I'll make sure you have plenty of fights soon.”
To anyone else, those words would have sounded chilling, but the cornered Cain didn't catch the ominous undertone.
“Not like that! I mean properly, as a team!”
“Even if you say that, it's practically impossible right now.”
“……?”
“Look at the invited team's roster. There's me, Lee Se-yeon, and you. That leaves three spots.”
Lee Da-bi counted on her fingers and asked in confusion.
“Isn't it two spots?”
“Ah. My bad. I subconsciously excluded myself.”
“…….”
His subconscious desire to absolutely avoid being on the same team as Lee Se-yeon had slipped out.
“Anyway, two spots left, right? According to PD Bae Jang-wook, the competition for those last two spots is absolutely cutthroat.”
No matter how skilled a player was, there was no guarantee they would pass the qualifiers in the Prika Arena. Since everyone's levels were adjusted to be equal, a single mistake could be fatal! Naturally, everyone wanted to get into the broadcast station's invited team. Skipping the qualifiers to go straight to the main tournament was highly attractive, but it was also a way to prove one's popularity.
Because of this, other broadcasting stations were in a frenzy. The players contracted with them were constantly glancing toward MBS with intense interest.
“Can't they just invite another whole team?”
“They have to invite international teams, so they can't bring in too many domestic teams. It dilutes the prestige. Anyway, Cain. The point is, don't expect any real practice. Those two spots won't be decided anytime soon, and even when they are, practicing as a team will be tough.”
Whoever joined would undoubtedly be a famous player, meaning they would be just as busy in Pan-On. Practicing together to build chemistry would be nearly impossible. Tae-hyun was reading the situation perfectly based on his experience from Pan-On 1.
But now that I think about it, isn't this actually a bad situation for me?
Tae-hyun pondered. Although he had been practically forced to participate because of Lee Se-yeon, now that he was in, he fully intended to win. But the circumstances weren't great. The teams coming up through the fierce qualifiers would have solid teamwork and plenty of practice.
In contrast, the invited team wasn't even fully formed yet, put together solely for popularity and box office draw. While each individual's skill was undeniable, teamwork was just as important in a 5v5 battle.
Well, Cain and I have great synergy, and Lee Se-yeon will carry her own weight. I just hope the remaining two are reasonable people.
“Khehe... Magnificent.”
“Hand over the reward.”
“I was the one who tasked you, but to think you would actually find this curse and bring it back...”
“Hey, I said hand over the reward!”
“Splendid. You are more than worthy of this reward. Behold!”
Saruon seemed completely oblivious to the murderous glint in Tae-hyun's eyes.
If it's some useless secret skill, I'm going straight to the temple street, spending all my contribution points, and raiding you!
He was radiating pure bloodlust! But Saruon paid no mind and waved his hand. A dark light flashed, and a message window popped up in front of Tae-hyun.
◈ Effect: Turns a touched target or a part of their body into a bomb.
◈ Scaling: The explosive power scales based on the target's strength.
“!!!!!!”
Tae-hyun's eyes widened. Engineering skills had a lot of duds. Even skills that looked decent often had terrible side effects. But despite that, the reason players kept digging into Engineering was...
Because of powerful, unique jackpot skills like this that couldn't be found anywhere else!
“Cain. Come here for a second.”
“What is it... Wait. There's something weird about your eyes.”
Cain was no longer an easy target. Having suffered so many times, he had reached a level where he could read Tae-hyun's intentions just by looking at his eyes.
“Haha, what are you talking about? Just come here. We're teammates in the tournament now, and you're doubting me? I'm deeply hurt.”
“W-Well...”
At Tae-hyun's guilt-tripping, Cain hesitantly approached.
Why is this guy acting like this?
—Living Bomb!
“?!”
1, 2, 3, 4... This takes longer than I thought. Well, if the casting time were short, it'd be completely broken.
If it were instant, he could just turn enemies into bombs and blow them up instantly. But because of the long casting time, that was impossible. If he got interrupted, the skill would cancel immediately!
Your left arm has turned into a bomb.
It is extremely dangerous if it explodes.
“What the hell did you just do to me, you crazy bastard?!”
“Ah. So that's how it works!”
Tae-hyun nodded in satisfaction. Watching this from behind, Saruon wore a pleased expression.
Demon Blacksmith Saruon's evaluation of you has increased.
Your Infamy has increased significantly.