Chapter 122
Chapter 122
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 122
Chapter Title: A Few Simple Promises
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"Overall, it's all a mess."
Lee Soo-hyuk immediately launched into his feedback.
"Yes..."
A dejected response.
Seeing Pak Soo-hyuk with drooping ears and his head slightly bowed, Lee Soo-hyuk tossed him a small carrot.
"But that 'overall' includes everyone except you, Pak Soo-hyuk."
This was the best carrot he could offer right now.
No matter how down he was, Lee Soo-hyuk couldn't conjure up carrots that didn't exist.
"Others too?"
"Yes. Though among them, you're especially a mess..."
Lee Soo-hyuk quickly continued.
"But it's all about the same. Tier's a tier, after all."
The Pak Soo-hyuk that Lee Soo-hyuk had observed was a hardworking dullard.
You could tell just from the fact that he'd reached the 4th floor with that kind of talent. It was an achievement impossible without effort.
Of course, the capital to keep retrying after failing exams multiple times played a role too.
"So you're saying I'm the worst, Master?"
"Correct."
"This master's a bit harsh."
A snicker escaped at Pak Soo-hyuk's quip.
Lee Soo-hyuk had worried he might wilt, but fortunately, he didn't.
Come to think of it, it was only natural.
Pak Soo-hyuk had heard "you're no good" every other day up to now.
His mental fortitude was probably comparable to a ranker's.
"Fix this, react like that... That stuff takes too long anyway, and even if you try, it won't work well."
"Yeah, that's true."
Pak Soo-hyuk nodded.
Indeed, all his previous masters had taught him that way.
Focus on the exam. Distribute skills to conserve mana. Concentrate more when using skills.
He understood with his head, but couldn't execute them.
"If I knew how to do that stuff, would I be here? Absolutely not."
"I figured you knew at least some of it, but we'll start assuming you don't."
"What should I do then!"
Whether for the stream or his natural personality,
Pak Soo-hyuk clasped his hands together with exaggerated gestures and tone.
Well,
He probably didn't want a forced marriage with a guy any more than the next person.
"It's easy. Super easy."
"Easy?"
"Yes. Just make a few promises with me."
Pak Soo-hyuk looked baffled.
"...Promises?"
Feedback time ended, and Pak Soo-hyuk immediately started the next exam.
His mind was filled with thoughts of what would happen if he failed this mission.
'No way. Absolutely not.'
Forced marriage with a guy? He passed on that kind of content.
He had to pass this mission somehow. Even more than the mission rewards, to avoid the marriage.
'Promises, he said.'
The messages signaling the start of the exam appeared.
Pak Soo-hyuk began to focus.
"Alright. Let's go, bros."
Thwack-.
He smacked the mask on his face with his palm. Right from the start, his Bronze 4 teammates recognized Pak Soo-hyuk.
"Huh? The mask..."
"It's Pak Soo-hyuk!"
"Pak Soo-hyuk? You mean that guy? Fake Soo-hyuk?"
"Would that guy be in this tier? Obviously it's Pak Soo-hyuk."
Two teammates recognized him.
But one of them wasn't thrilled.
"Ah, we're screwed then. This game's over."
The player named Diehard grumbled irritably as he trudged off.
"I'm going top."
"Hey, we should at least discuss..."
"Come if you want."
With that, Diehard headed top as he pleased.
The atmosphere was friendly, but even then, winning the exam was iffy.
'This game's doomed.'
The exam started with bruised egos from the get-go. Plus, one player already harbored resentment toward him.
A botched game right from the start.
Even the lanes got messed up.
"Mid for the first time?"
Pak Soo-hyuk was assigned mid lane.
His main was top. Mid required more roles, so it was avoided.
He'd tried to dodge it, but another player had sniped top first.
"Doomed..."
Time passed, and minions spawned.
The exam truly began.
Upon reaching the turret, an enemy player from the opposing side appeared. The player named 'Radol' wielded two daggers.
He looked decently geared, at least on the surface.
"You don't need to do anything special. Just memorize a few promises and keep them."
Pak Soo-hyuk recalled his conversation with Lee Soo-hyuk.
A few promises.
Just remember and follow those. Compared to other masters' feedback, this was way easier.
'Alright. Let's do this.'
This mission was one he absolutely couldn't fail.
He had to grind it out somehow. For now, all he could do was trust Lee Soo-hyuk.
The spawned minions reached the lane. As instructed, he slowly began farming.
"The 4th floor exams focus on growth rules. Even with poor control, good farming gets you halfway there."
The first promise with Lee Soo-hyuk.
"Never dive first—farm only at the start. No exceptions."
Don't overextend, focus on farming.
It made sense. With his lacking control, growth was his only path.
If he grew well, crushing with stats wasn't impossible.
Farming progressed steadily.
Enemy daggers flew occasionally, but hiding behind allied minions made dodging easy.
He'd excluded fighting from the start anyway.
Time passed like that.
"This guy's really pissing me off."
Flash-.
The enemy finally dove in, unable to hold back.
"Keep farming minions, and eventually the enemy will overextend first."
'...Huh?'
Pak Soo-hyuk blinked at the enemy charging through the minions.
It matched the prediction perfectly, like a preview.
No hesitation in his next move.
Clang-!
Two daggers clashed with his sword. Scraping metal followed, and exchanges began.
But.
"Damn, why's he only defending non-stop..."
No intent to fight—Pak Soo-hyuk focused solely on blocking attacks.
A frustrating stalemate with no resolution.
That was the situation for a moment.
"Heh heh heh..."
Pak Soo-hyuk suddenly let out a creepy laugh.
"Gotcha."
"Got what-."
The enemy paused mid-fight—what nonsense was this?
"...Huh?"
Radol's eyes widened as he looked around.
The area was now packed with minions. When the allied player got attacked, the minions aggroed.
Over ten minions under his control.
"Early minions are stronger than you think."
"Succeed here, and the mission's half-cleared."
Pak Soo-hyuk counterattacked.
"No forced marriage—!"
An unbelievable situation unfolded.
Pak Soo-hyuk's massacre.
It was the first time something like this had happened since the 4th floor exams began.
No.
It was something no one thought would happen.
"Wha... Why am I doing so well?"
Even he seemed flustered.
Just over 15 minutes into the new exam, Pak Soo-hyuk had racked up 5 kills.
A series of baffling situations.
He didn't seem exceptionally good, yet kills kept coming luckily, repeatedly.
It started with the first kill.
Enemy players diving into minions on their own, creating unfavorable situations. Pak Soo-hyuk capitalizing for the kill.
After the first, he rotated top for the second.
Now, grown from kills, he was stat-crushing foes.
Lee Soo-hyuk's feedback was broadcast live.
But it was disappointingly simple—too easy to copy.
Yet.
"No need for hard stuff. You wouldn't do it anyway."
The results were better than any feedback before.
A hefty sum with a short message.
Likely a player stuck on 4th floor for ages.
"Thanks for the sponsorship, 4thFloorGhost. I'll explain short and simple."
Lee Soo-hyuk spoke while watching Pak Soo-hyuk push the second turret.
"Pak Soo-hyuk always abandons farming to fight. Not just him—this whole tier does it."
First promise.
Focus on farming until the enemy dives.
"No need to fight early. Farm, and your minions outnumber theirs naturally. When they dive in frustration, use them for a counter-kill."
Lee Soo-hyuk shook his head.
"They dive nine times out of ten."
In normal cases, maybe not.
"These guys don't think much."
In Pak Soo-hyuk's tier, it was plausible.
He'd thought so watching recent games.
Even with poor control, this mission was doable.
"Recent matches were all charge in, fight, lose—straight losses. Countering such obvious patterns is flip-of-a-hand easy."
Cursed physicals?
Fix the non-physical stuff then.
"Exams aren't just brawling. Simple as they seem, 4th floor has rules to understand."
Lee Soo-hyuk extended fingers one by one.
"Farming, stats, minions, turrets, lanes, jungle... Endless things to consider. Grasping the relationships is what the 4th floor exam teaches."
Lee Soo-hyuk nodded at the viewers' reactions.
"Yes. That's why I didn't explain it to Pak Soo-hyuk that way. He'd never get it anyway."
Commonly called brainjics.
Like physicals, brainjics needed long training too.
"So I just planted a few promises simply. Follow them here, and you're over halfway."
Lee Soo-hyuk looked at the stream screen.
"See?"
Lee Soo-hyuk grinned at the incoming points.
"Easy, right?"