Chapter 107
Chapter 107
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 107
Chapter Title: 20. Showcase (2)
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He still remembered it vividly.
It had been a full five years since he'd met that thirteen-year-old kid, the one he'd even mentioned in his conversation with Lee Soo-chan.
It had been exactly the same back then.
The moment he spotted Kang San, whom they'd dragged along as a party member, the kid's youthful face twisted in disgust.
"What the hell? Why do I have to raid with trash like that?"
"Chan-young, watch your mouth!"
The boy's name was Im Chan-young.
A man who seemed to be from the management agency glanced around nervously and whispered in a hushed voice.
"This is your stage to prove your talent. If you clear an E-Rank dungeon with F-Rank arrow sponges like them, it'll show everyone just how incredible your innate gift is. So try to hold your tongue as much as possible. Got it?"
"Y-Yeah."
Im Chan-young looked thoroughly displeased.
His innate talent assessment had given him a straight C-Rank without any effort at all.
It was talent like no other.
The raid began, and despite Im Chan-young's outbursts, Kang San and the arrow sponges steadfastly performed their roles.
"Block the front!"
"You trash bastards, don't you have eyes?"
"Seriously, no talent and now you're skimping on effort too? You think you'll get paid like that? Do it right, properly!"
Throughout the entire hunt, Im Chan-young kept up the verbal abuse.
Even the manager filming promotional footage for Im Chan-young eventually sighed and stopped the camera. They knew he was arrogant. At just thirteen, he'd been rated C-Rank and showered with attention, with major agencies throwing around massive sums to sign him. In the end, Daeyang secured him with a 5 billion won contract bonus, and his ego had only soared from there.
That was the result.
Im Chan-young thought it was fine to act that way.
Because he was different from the F-Rank trash scraping by.
The raid ended.
As Kang San packed up to leave, Im Chan-young sauntered over and sneered.
"Hey, old man."
"...What do you want?"
"If you don't have talent, just quit already. Someone without even innate gifts, an F-Rank no less—why are you flailing around like that? If it were me, I'd have found something else ages ago. Hunting's a job for people born for it, like me. So."
Thud.
He tossed something over.
A few crumpled bills.
"Take this and buy yourself something nice. And stay the hell away from this line of work."
That incident.
For Kang San, it was an unforgettable memory.
Which made the present encounter all the more surprising.
Five years later, he was facing Im Chan-young—who was still just C-Rank—in the B-Rank testing grounds.
Im Chan-young.
Just as Kang San remembered, his debut had been spectacular.
A C-Rank rating at just thirteen.
Daeyang, who spared no expense in investing heavily across Korea's management scene, bet 10 billion won on him as the future of the agency. People agreed it wasn't excessive. With an innate C-Rank, hitting A-Rank was practically guaranteed, and at his age, he could go even higher.
His name dominated the media for a while.
They even aired a live stream of his daily life, dubbing him Korea's future hope.
But that glory was short-lived.
Im Chan-young's current situation was different.
'...I have to pass this test no matter what.'
The past five years.
Under Daeyang's management, expectations were high. Starting at C-Rank, he'd surely hit B-Rank within three years at the latest.
He'd progressed smoothly, and right on the three-year mark, he took the B-Rank test. Contrary to hopes of passing on the first try, he failed spectacularly. Back then, no one thought much of it. Still in his mid-teens, he could bounce back quickly.
But the second failure.
The third, the fourth.
As disappointments piled up, by the fifth failure, opinions shifted.
"That kid... I don't think he's the real deal."
Someone had said it.
Now, they eyed him with suspicion.
Im Chan-young had been born with magic talent and immense mana, earning his C-Rank start. But his actual spellcasting skill and power fell short of B-Rank standards, and with no progress, rumors spread that his 'ceiling' might be low. Even inside Daeyang, doubts crept in. Sure, signing him at thirteen meant he was still in his late teens—a silver lining—but after sinking 10 billion, disappointment was inevitable.
Perhaps that's why.
Im Chan-young was starting to face reality.
He wasn't as brazenly arrogant anymore, but he still clung to rosy dreams.
'If I just pass the B-Rank test, opinions will turn around. There aren't many late teens with B-Rank in Korea.'
He steeled his resolve.
This was already his tenth attempt.
He was sure this time would be it.
But the moment he spotted Kang San, he lost control of his expression.
"Fuck, what the hell? Why are you here?"
He remembered the face.
An F-Rank arrow sponge he'd met before.
The problem was that this nobody from his memories had shown up as a B-Rank test teammate.
'How the hell did this happen?'
It made no sense.
The guy had definitely been F-Rank.
Even if he'd grown rapidly since then, it was unbelievable he'd reached B-Rank test level already. Im Chan-young couldn't trust Kang San's skills. Promotion tests weren't purely about raid success, but a weak link like him could prevent everyone from performing. Already on edge from repeated failures, Im Chan-young couldn't stomach a variable like Kang San.
Especially this test.
He was confident of success.
Believing he could finally pass, Im Chan-young rushed to the examiner to complain.
"Please switch my teammate."
"May I ask why?"
"That guy was an F-Rank arrow sponge just a few years ago. I don't know how he qualified for B-Rank testing, but teaming with someone that incompetent hurts us. Put him in the next test or whatever—just bench him for now."
"That's not possible. Team members aren't chosen individually."
"Come on, that's not fair."
"If you're unhappy with the current lineup, you can always take the next test."
"Ah, shit—."
Dizziness hit him.
No dice.
After arguing futilely, Im Chan-young glanced at Kang San watching from afar.
"This is bullshit."
For this test, Im Chan-young felt like the heavens were screwing him over.
Just before the test.
They had a briefing session.
The team leader, a warrior named Nam Tae-ju, calmly explained the situation.
"As the examiner briefed us, the test site is Vampire Castle. It's a hunting ground hosting B-Rank vampires as bosses, swarming with monsters under their command—unpredictable variables galore. We need to proceed with more caution than ever. Rushing in could lead to total wipeout."
"No need to be that careful. We're already screwed anyway."
"Pardon? What do you mean?"
It was Im Chan-young.
Nam Tae-ju shot him a puzzled look at the interruption.
Im Chan-young continued.
"I know that tanker personally, and he's not cut out for Vampire Castle. Save your energy and just go through the motions. In team raids, the tanker's the key, and trusting that one will get us hurt—bad."
"That's a bit harsh. He's still our teammate."
"Teammate my ass. This is why Korea's promotion system's broken. Why can't they judge pure individual skill? No idea why they make teammates affect the evaluation."
It was malicious slander.
Even with Kang San listening, Im Chan-young didn't hide his contempt.
In his memory, Kang San was utterly worthless.
A guy who'd risked his life against F-Rank monsters—trusting him in a B-Rank test was absurd. To Im Chan-young, it was simple logic. Even he, the prodigy, hadn't broken B-Rank; an ex-F-Rank like Kang San had clear limits.
Throughout it all, Kang San stayed silent.
Honestly, it was amusing.
A sense of profound change washed over him.
Someone he'd once had to look up to was now taking the same test.
'So much has really changed.'
In just one year, Kang San had risen to a new level.
He figured even he'd feel inferior reuniting with an F-Rank arrow sponge if their positions were reversed.
But he wouldn't derail things.
Whatever his history with Im Chan-young, Kang San intended to prove himself and pass the test.
Nam Tae-ju spoke up.
"I don't know what beef you two have, but let's just do our best and see."
He wrapped up the briefing.
The strategy was straightforward: advance steadily with the tanker up front.
Nam Tae-ju alternated glances between the quiet Kang San, who'd helped sort things out, and the still grumbling Im Chan-young.
'...This'll be a tough one.'
If Im Chan-young was right, the tanker Kang San was subpar.
And with that mage's attitude, team play was a lost cause.
Worst-case scenario.
The rest of the team, including Nam Tae-ju, thought so.
Then, it hit Nam Tae-ju—Kang San's name rang a bell.
'Where have I heard it?'
Lately.
The name Kang San had been popping up everywhere.
It was familiar, but he didn't connect it to the guy testing here.
The Kang San people talked about was D-Rank.
No way the B-Rank test participant was the same person.
Time was up.
As they prepared to enter the hunting ground, Im Chan-young approached and demanded answers.
"How the hell did you pull this off? It doesn't make sense for trash like you to even be in a B-Rank test."
"On the flip side, why are you here?"
"Huh?"
"Didn't you say we're born different? Shouldn't you be gunning for A-Rank by now?"
"...You little shit."
Im Chan-young's face flushed red.
It struck his sore spot.
He'd reacted aggressively to Kang San not just from doubt, but from the shock of meeting someone he'd dismissed as inferior on equal footing. Im Chan-young had no comeback. Unable to bring up his own failures, he huffed and stormed off.
Right on cue, time was called.
Under the examiner's guidance, the testers entered the hunting ground.
Whoosh—
Space warped.
A musty stench assaulted their noses.
The first sight: a purple sky over blackened earth, scorched like something had burned there.
And far off, their apparent destination—a black castle.
That was when it happened.
A new trial.
Kang San raised his shield with a calm expression at the trial's conditions.
This worked out perfectly.
Trial or no trial.
Kang San had planned from the start.
'I'll pass for sure.'
He intended to fulfill his role perfectly in this test.