They Won't Show Up Anyway

"Come on, they won't show up anyway. There's nothing to worry about," Tae-hyun said confidently. This wasn't the first time an alliance like that had been formed. Hadn't a similar coalition cropped up after he completely cleaned out Su Ning and the Holy Knight Size King Guild? In fact, within the major guild alliances, there had been several waves of public opinion shouting, "Let's destroy that bastard Kim Tae-hyun!" Yet, the reason nothing ever came of it was simple.

It was because everyone was incredibly selfish! To face Tae-hyun, one or two unlucky souls would inevitably get logged out, and nobody wanted to be the sacrificial lamb. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Thanks to that, Tae-hyun had been able to live a comfortable, prosperous life up until now.

But Choi Sang-yun was dead serious.

"I'm telling you, it's different this time," Sang-yun said over the call.

"Huh?"

"One of the rankers I know watched your broadcast and is actively gathering people with absolute determination."

"..."

Tae-hyun suddenly felt a chill run down his spine.

"You have a tendency to underestimate the things you've done. The guys you targeted are still grinding their teeth in rage."

"Come on, that was ages ago..."

"Dude, look at Do Dong-su."

"Okay, when you put it that way, it makes total sense."

A grudge like that lasted a lifetime! Indeed, hadn't Do Dong-su thrown himself at Tae-hyun, fully prepared to ruin his own tournament and career? Of course, Tae-hyun had tormented him relentlessly, but still...

"Just be really careful. I'm almost done with my quests, so I'll come help you out soon."

"I'd appreciate that."

Tae-hyun calculated the situation as he listened to Choi Sang-yun. For now, his territory was safe. He could still utilize the noble knights, and if necessary, he could spend Contribution Points to borrow strength from neighboring kingdoms.

Thank goodness I didn't expand...

Since he only had one territory, it was much easier to defend.

When will they come? Will they send assassin players? I should probably disappear the moment I leave the arena. I'll focus on clearing my Authority quests for a while. Oh, right. I need to meet up with Galakpad too...

"Hello!"

A youthful voice called out. Tae-hyun turned his head. Two young girls who bore a striking resemblance to Lee Da-bi were staring at him.

"Your sisters?"

"Yes. They're my younger sisters."

Upon seeing Tae-hyun, the two girls flinched and took a step back. Tae-hyun felt a slight pang of emotional damage at their clearly terrified reaction. If nothing else, children were supposed to be honest!

"Ahaha... They're just a bit..." Noticing that Tae-hyun was hurt, Lee Da-bi immediately turned around and glared at her sisters.

"Mind your manners!" she hissed silently.

"...!" At Da-bi's warning, the sisters quickly corrected their posture.

"W-We're sorry!"

"You looked different from how you did on the broadcast, so we got scared for a second!"

"..." Tae-hyun's face crumpled at the brutally honest explanation.

Tae-hyun was walking alongside Lee Da-bi's sisters. In the meantime, Lee Da-sol cautiously glanced at him before speaking up. She was dying to know what kind of relationship Tae-hyun had with her older sister. Whenever they asked Da-bi, she would only reply with things like, "We're business partners," "I told you, we're nothing," or "Ah! If you keep prying, I'm not taking you to the broadcasting station! Keep quiet!" Now was the perfect opportunity to ask. Conveniently, Da-bi was busy chatting with the other sister, Lee Da-saem!

"Um..."

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

"?"

"What's your relationship with our big sister?"

"We're friends."

"Friends?!" Lee Da-sol gasped in shock.

"Why are you so surprised?"

"I had no idea Sis actually had friends...!"

"..." Tae-hyun stared at Lee Da-bi with a complicated expression. Just what kind of image did she have with her sisters?

"O-Oh, no! I didn't mean Sis is weird or anything... She's really nice! She just works all the time because of us! A-And it's not like she doesn't have friends! She has lots of friends!"

"R-Right."

"It's true!"

"Okay... I get it, so you can stop now...!" Tae-hyun felt second-hand embarrassment just listening to her excuses. Lee Da-sol was flustered, not knowing what to do. Somehow, she had ended up accidentally badmouthing her sister. What if this caused Tae-hyun to misunderstand Da-bi?!

"What are you guys talking about?" Da-bi asked, walking over.

"Ah. Uh. Well." Tae-hyun quickly racked his brain for an excuse. "We were, uh, praising you?"

"Huh? Oh, ahaha... Why would you say something like that?" Lee Da-bi blushed and pulled Lee Da-sol close. Da-sol bowed her head in silent gratitude to Tae-hyun for saving her.

"By the way, where are we going?"

"Let's go eat some meat. Meat is the only way to celebrate," Tae-hyun said, recalling a lesson he'd learned from his father, Kim Tae-san: Eat meat when you're sad, and eat meat when you're happy!

"Oh! I know a butcher shop in our neighborhood that's having a sale today. Let's go there."

"No... we're eating out."

"Eating out?!"

"We're eating meat at a restaurant?!" Lee Da-sol and Lee Da-saem cried out in unison. Lee Da-bi's face turned beet red.

"Is that really okay?!"

"Did you guys forget I just won the tournament prize money, even though you watched the broadcast with me?" Of course, even without the prize money, Tae-hyun was loaded, but explaining all of that right now was too much of a hassle. The two sisters nodded, seemingly convinced.

"O-Oh, right...!"

"Then are we going to eat thin-sliced pork belly?"

"...Let's go eat Hanwoo beef," Tae-hyun said, doing his absolute ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠best to maintain a straight face.

While Tae-hyun was happily grilling beef with Lee Da-bi's sisters, Cain was experiencing something he had never anticipated.

I am officially the happiest man in the world right now...!

Winning the tournament! Securing a massive amount of prize money! The sudden shift in how his family looked at him! He was no longer a useless, unemployed freeloader! Although Kim Tae-hyun's true identity still weighed heavily on his mind, Cain decided to push it aside for now. He was just too happy!

"Hey! Are you Player Cain... Oh? You are Player Cain, right?"

"?!" Cain turned his head. His jaw dropped. Standing right in front of him was Ha-yeon from the idol group Five Girls, someone he had only ever seen on TV. Cain's heart began to hammer against his ribs.

"H-Heavens, are you... are you perhaps Ha-yeon from Five Girls...?"

"Yes, I am... But that's strange?" Ha-yeon tilted her head. He looked completely different from the person she had met at the agency who claimed to be Cain (who was actually Tae-hyun).

"I-I'm a huge fan!"

"Oh... thank you. I'm a fan of yours too."

"T-Thank you?" A heartwarming conversation ensued, though both of them were thoroughly confused. Cain was simply a fan of Ha-yeon, while Ha-yeon had become a fan of Cain after watching the Pan-On tournament. The problem was...

"Uh, excuse me, but something feels really weird right now."

"Pardon?"

"I think... someone might be impersonating you..." Ha-yeon regained her composure and began to explain. Some guy at her agency was pretending to be him! As Cain listened to her explanation, his expression turned incredibly complex.

T-That bastard...! Even a cornered dog learns to bite; after spending so much time around Tae-hyun, Cain could put two and two together instantly. Kim Tae-hyun, you absolute scoundrel...!!!

"It's that bastard Kim Tae-hyun!"

"What?"

"Kim Tae-hyun scammed you! He's an incredibly wicked guy!"

"Oh my gosh! Kim Tae-hyun? Se-yeon once cursed that guy out!"

"..." Cain had just stumbled upon some juicy behind-the-scenes gossip, but that was a matter for later. Right now, he had to focus on the task at hand: trash-talking Tae-hyun! People naturally bonded fastest when they shared a mutual hatred for the same person. Just as Jekas and Su Ning had, Ha-yeon and Cain quickly grew close. As fellow victims of Tae-hyun's schemes, they bonded rapidly over their shared grievances.

"I'm telling you, that's exactly what he did! Can you believe him?!"

"He really did that?! What a horrible person! Wait, then when I logged into Pan-On to find you, and you ran away babbling nonsense... was that Kim Tae-hyun too?"

"Ah, no. That was actually me..." The atmosphere suddenly turned ice-cold! As Ha-yeon's gaze chilled, Cain felt his heart plummet into his stomach.

"N-No, wait! Let me explain! I thought you were an assassin!"

"An assassin?"

"It's a really long story...!" Sweating bullets, Cain desperately launched into a detailed explanation. He honestly didn't know whether he should be grateful to Tae-hyun or absolutely furious with him.

"Congratulations on winning the tournament. Please accept this honorable medal." The spirit NPC of the Prika Arena stepped forward and handed Tae-hyun his medal. Lee Se-yeon, Do Dong-su, and Kim Chul-soo had already claimed their rewards individually, and now Tae-hyun and Cain had logged in to receive theirs. Aside from the real-world prize money, there were also substantial in-game rewards. It had been a massive global tournament, after all.

"?!?!" Tae-hyun was utterly shocked. He had expected the rewards to be generous, but leveling up three times all at once? Glancing at Cain beside him, the Chimera player looked even more stunned. For players who didn't have level-up restrictions like Tae-hyun did, their levels probably shot up by more than ten in one go!

Should I be happy about this or not...? It was a good thing, but the thought of Lee Se-yeon or Do Dong-su gaining just as many levels completely ruined his mood.

A new skill unlocked by reaching 4,500 Luck. Tae-hyun was about to pump his fist in victory... but stopped.

Huh?

Something about it felt a bit off. He could understand why the penalty ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠associated with his Luck stat remained active during Fortune Conversion. His passive Luck skills granted massive buffs to his evasion and critical hit rates based on his Luck stat, but they carried a brutal penalty that drastically increased the experience required to level up. If that penalty were lifted during the conversion, he could simply swap his Luck to another stat, level up easily, and then swap back. He hadn't expected the game to let him off that easy.

The real issue was that it selected a random stat!

Doesn't that mean I can't use it when I actually need to?

If he couldn't choose the specific stat he wanted in a clutch moment, the skill was practically useless. On top of that, it wasn't like the cooldown on this skill would be short either...

Ugh, anyway, my Luck stat is getting seriously dangerous.

Tae-hyun fell into deep thought. 4,500 Luck. Normally, the higher a stat, the better, but Tae-hyun couldn't afford to raise it mindlessly. The higher it went, the harder it became to level up. He needed to actively manage it, keeping it at a reasonable level by lowering it when necessary.

To lower my Luck... I can't use Summon Divine Beast since I already have Yong-yong. Does that leave Artifact Crafting?

Instead of crafting cheap, low-grade items, he could aim to create a masterpiece. Crafting such legendary artifacts often required consuming a portion of his Luck stat as part of the process. The problem was that making a masterpiece took a massive amount of time and required rare, expensive materials!

Ah, seriously, I have so much to do, but I also have so many enemies... What should I start with?

There were too many tasks on his plate. Even so, Tae-hyun didn't hesitate. He quickly began prioritizing his to-do list.

"Excuse me."

"?"

"You need to take this box as well."

"Ah. Yes."

Lost in thought, Tae-hyun hadn't heard the arena spirit speaking to him. For some reason, the spirit handed him the box with a thoroughly annoyed expression.

"Cain. What did you get?"

"I got a Silver Box."

"Do they hand them out differently based on contribution?"

"Did you get something else?"

"I got a Golden Box."

"No fair! Keeping the good stuff to yourself...!"

"Just be glad you got something better than Do Dong-su."

"..."

Cain nodded in agreement. Do Dong-su had undoubtedly received a box of a much lower grade than silver.