Chapter 7
Chapter 7
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 7
Chapter Title: Gumi's Greatest Swordsman (3)
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Gulp.
Youngwoo unconsciously swallowed hard.
It was because he instinctively sensed that the opportunity or crisis of a lifetime had arrived.
‘Gumi's Greatest Swordsman… The moment I claim this title, I become a target for every strong fighter.’
Therefore, by all logic, it would be right to refuse this chance.
It was obvious he’d eventually run into enemies with similar gear but far superior physical abilities.
‘But this isn’t just any title.’
Youngwoo knew full well that the tooltip in front of him didn’t simply mean a ‘title.’
「Gumi's Greatest Swordsman」 - Unique Title
【Prestige of the Supreme Sword】
【Gumi Swordsmanship】
It was because he already possessed an item in the exact same format.
「Earlybird」 - Heroic One-Handed Sword
【Extremely light.】
In other words.
‘Titles are a type of item too. Those two lines below are special options.’
Prestige of the Supreme Sword, Gumi Swordsmanship.
He couldn’t tell exactly what effects they had right away, but it was clear they would have a massive impact on his combat power.
Especially ‘Gumi Swordsmanship.’
Even Earlybird’s ‘Extremely light’ had made a huge difference in feel—how much more would this option, named ‘Swordsmanship,’ do?
“…….”
As Youngwoo agonized over it, a countdown soon began.
-Will you ascend to Gumi's Greatest Swordsman?
…Acquisition rights expire in 5 seconds.
…4.
…3.
‘Damn, no time to think.’
As the remaining time dwindled, Youngwoo quickly reviewed the assets he had secured.
133,000 karma, including the pay he’d soon collect from Yechan.
On top of that, rummaging through the attackers’ pockets scattered on the ground would yield some extra coins.
The attackers’ dropped gear—spear, axe, hammer—counted as assets too.
So in this situation, was it wiser to grow even stronger at the cost of making multiple enemies and drawing attention, or to avoid the spotlight?
‘No. The latter was never an option for me to begin with.’
Youngwoo’s gaze landed on Earlybird’s silver blade.
And right on cue, the countdown hit 1 second.
That’s when Youngwoo hurriedly accepted the position of Gumi's Greatest Swordsman.
‘I’ll do it, Gumi's Greatest Swordsman……!’
Fearing he might be too late, he widened his eyes, and soon an announcement appeared not just to him, but to everyone in Gumi City.
「Gumi region’s Supreme Sword has been selected!」
「Current Gumi's Greatest Swordsman: ‘Jeong Youngwoo07’. Generation 1, Defenses 0.」
「Becoming the Supreme Sword allows overwhelmingly rapid growth.」
「Anyone can ascend to Supreme Sword through duel, and succession method is murder.」
‘Succession method is murder…….’
As Youngwoo felt a chill run down his spine, multicolored lights gathered above his head.
And then.
Ping!
With a sharp sound effect, it formed a string of text.
『Gumi's Greatest Swordsman』
It was none other than the title. Just as Youngwoo had predicted, it attached itself above his head for all to see.
“Uh… Mister.”
Yechan, who had been blankly watching the whole scene, called out to Youngwoo.
Youngwoo turned his head that way, then groaned inwardly upon realizing why.
‘Damn.’
It was visible to his own eyes too.
|Current region: ‘Gumi.’
|This region’s Supreme Sword: ‘Jeong Youngwoo07’. Generation 1, Defenses 0.
The small text stuck to the upper right of his vision didn’t disappear with time.
In other words, now anyone could check the local Supreme Sword’s name and record in real time.
‘Defenses at 0 means no challengers repelled yet. Everyone and their dog will come at me for a while.’
Which meant this was a vulnerable period, so to speak.
So how many defenses would it take before challengers thought twice?
“…….”
No matter how he thought about it, it was too tall a mountain.
Youngwoo gazed up at the title shining above his head with a somewhat grim feeling.
Then Yechan approached him, clinking along.
“Mister, what do we do with these?”
Wondering what it was, Youngwoo looked over to see Yechan awkwardly clutching three weapons to his chest.
He had gathered the attackers’ leftovers.
“Coins?”
“…Huh?”
Seeing Yechan completely clueless, Youngwoo silently searched the corpses and pulled out the coins.
7,000, then 4,000, and the last one 5,000.
‘Pretty ruthless bastards, huh.’
Given that basic living funds were only 3,000, carrying more than that meant they’d snatched coins from someone at the exchange.
Of course, they could’ve been exchangers themselves who barely escaped with some, but…
‘Doubt it. Would backstabbers like these leave points unused?’
It was something he knew from experience.
Evil people had plenty of shots fired at them and plenty they had to block, so they couldn’t save karma points.
Like his old roommate Im Bonghui.
On the other hand, those who had points left after all the sniping tended to be the upright ones.
Like the cop he’d met at the first exchange, or Yechan, whom he’d run into at the Mountain of Swords.
Clink.
As Youngwoo dumped the coins he’d taken from the dead into his backpack, he said to Yechan,
“Let’s settle up properly once we find somewhere safe.”
Yechan’s eyes widened, then his face lit up.
“Oh… Sounds good.”
From Yechan’s perspective, sticking close to Youngwoo was the best for survival.
Plus, this man Youngwoo was now ‘Gumi's Greatest Swordsman.’
But the Supreme Sword himself had no room to relax.
“You said you wanted a spear?”
Saying this, Youngwoo took the axe from Yechan’s arms and tucked it into a side pocket of his backpack.
“No room for the sword. You carry the rest. Use them if shit hits the fan.”
“Really?”
Instead of answering Yechan’s question, Youngwoo glanced at the crowd gathered in the distance.
Then he patted Yechan’s shoulder and murmured low.
“Of course. Time for you to pull your weight too.”
* * *
West, then further west.
Youngwoo and Yechan moved nonstop along the arrow.
And they encountered countless would-be challengers.
Thanks to the ‘Gumi's Greatest Swordsman’ title visible even from afar.
But nine times out of ten, they backed off once they got close enough to see Youngwoo’s armed state.
Even if he wasn’t the Supreme Sword, they lacked the confidence to fight someone fully equipped with sword and shield.
Not everyone gave up cleanly, though.
“You the real Supreme Sword? Hard to believe.”
A sharp voice aimed at Youngwoo.
Some hulking brute had been tailing them at a distance of about ten meters for a while.
All he held was a single axe.
“Then come at me. What’s with the pathetic stalking?”
Youngwoo shot back with a glare over his shoulder.
Of course, as no natural brawler, it was pure bluff on his part.
But if this dragged on, another challenger might show up for a 2-on-1, or he could get ambushed from behind if he let his guard down even briefly.
That brute was probably banking on exactly that.
Cowardly, but the best strategy for him.
‘If I go to attack first, he’ll bolt… No good options here.’
Was this the life of a newbie Supreme Sword?
“I can tell at a glance. Whether someone’s cannon fodder or not.”
The man would toss provocations like that every so often, gauging Youngwoo’s reaction.
Ready to bolt if Youngwoo lunged.
And eventually.
“Ugh, what now. Not just one or two.”
A new challenger who looked no pushover appeared from their flank.
Two of them, even.
Not as huge as the rear pest, but their determined eyes and weapon combo were the problem.
One had a shield, the other a sword.
Especially the shield guy—his whole body was muscled, and the shield’s rim was stained red.
Proof he’d wielded it well as a weapon till now.
‘Means he’s struck people with it before.’
Youngwoo sensed it had come—the inevitable.
“What the hell are you thinking? You don’t all seem like criminals.”
When Youngwoo spoke in disbelief, the musclehead glanced at the sky and replied.
“The big shots are all dead, everything’s turning to stone. World’s ended, right? So we’re just grabbing what we can while there’s a chance.”
“We don’t kill just anyone out of nowhere. You’re the Supreme Sword, and you look loaded, that’s all.”
The last bit came from the sword guy, his partner, pointing at Youngwoo’s backpack.
The brute quickly jumped in.
“Hey, how about teaming up with me? Dragging this out just brings more rivals. We split the loot three ways fair, title’s whoever gets lucky.”
The weak prey on the strong… His tone and expression were worlds apart from when he’d been provoking Youngwoo.
“Not a bad deal.”
“Let’s do it.”
Agreement in a flash.
Youngwoo quietly told his client,
“I’ll fight my best, but if it looks hopeless for me, find an opening and run. Don’t die pointlessly.”
But Yechan’s response was unexpected.
“Running just means running into more like them and dying anyway, right? I’ve got weapons now, so I’ll help however I can.”
He gripped the spear so hard his hands looked corpse-pale.
And in that meantime, the brute from behind closed in, casting a large shadow.
Thud!
Right on cue, the two from the side kicked off the ground.
A simultaneous pincer attack.
‘All or nothing.’
Thump.
Youngwoo shoved Yechan back to create distance, then pulled his shield tight and assumed a defensive stance.
Plan was to weather the first clash and take them one by one.
But the enemies weren’t careless either—they spread out to all three sides, splitting his attention.
Slash!
“……!”
In the blink of an eye, they closed the gap. Pressure on a whole other level from the previous foes.
‘Fuck……!’
No time for tactical thought—Youngwoo went pure instinct.
“Hraaah!”
Guarding left with his shield, he swung Earlybird wide to the right.
Whoooosh!
A silver arc sliced the air.
And following that.
Fwooom!
A golden wave burst out from Youngwoo.
“……?”
“Ugh?”
The three challengers, poised to shred him, froze in place.
Their hearts suddenly felt like they’d explode.
“Wha……!”
Yechan, looking at Youngwoo in confusion, stiffened up too.
Gumi's Greatest Swordsman’s eyes had turned golden.
“What…….”
Bewildered, Youngwoo shook his head, and the golden glow traced a dizzying path.
“No way.”
Finally realizing something.
He looked up, and as always, the title and tooltip appeared.
「Gumi's Greatest Swordsman」 - Unique Title
【Prestige of the Supreme Sword】
【Gumi Swordsmanship】
‘No way the Prestige of the Supreme Sword is…’
As Youngwoo’s eyes widened, the brute swung his axe again.
He’d barely shaken off the prestige’s effect and could move.
“Die!”
Whoooosh!
The hefty axe blade flew in with massive presence.
But Youngwoo was seeing something else entirely.
‘Wh-what is this……?’
A hologram identical to himself stood right in front of him, sword tilted at an angle.
And it took no time to realize it was a defensive stance.
Whish!
Youngwoo swiftly mimicked the hologram’s pose.
The axe blade struck his extended sword, then slid off the slanted surface to the side.
“……?”
Whoosh.
The brute’s body lurched sideways.
And in sync, the hologram thrust at the brute’s throat.
―Kill (殺)
Displaying a ‘Kill’ mark at the strike point.
‘Ah……!’
Before he missed the beat, Youngwoo hurriedly moved his sword as the hologram did.
Swish.
The blade, pressed down by the axe’s weight, sprang up elastically, piercing the foe’s throat like a shot.
Spurt!
“Uh.”
“Gasp.”
So fast that neither stabber nor stabbed grasped what happened.
And soon.
Thud.
The brute’s massive body collapsed.