Chapter 146
Chapter 146
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 146
Chapter Title: Prelude to the Grand Competition
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Footsteps echoed regularly through the antique corridor.
Hwang Gyu-seong walked behind Cha Min-woo. Outside the window lay a pond where koi swam lazily and a fountain bubbled gently.
"The world's come a long way. Wonder how many points they threw around."
Bang-!
Crack, craaaack-.
A light punch shattered the wall, sending cracks spiderwebbing in every direction.
Cha Min-woo had long since stopped being surprised by his temperament.
'Is he refreshingly bold... or just recklessly brute?'
Glance-.
Cha Min-woo snuck a careful look at Hwang Gyu-seong, who trailed him like nothing had happened.
'Or maybe he's pissed.'
The time they'd spent together wasn't short by any means. Lee Won-jae had assigned him to monitor and attend to Hwang Gyu-seong.
But through it all, the only thing he'd gleaned about the man was his personality.
Blazing hot and feral. Yet in other moments, chillingly rational.
It was that same Lee Won-jae—the architect of this whole situation—who had summoned Hwang Gyu-seong.
"You've arrived?"
He hadn't waited inside the room but had come out to greet them personally.
He must have been eagerly awaiting Hwang Gyu-seong.
"Please, come in. The long journey must have been tiring."
"I'm hungry."
"I've prepared some refreshments inside."
Lee Won-jae treated Hwang Gyu-seong with utmost courtesy, as if welcoming a new guild master to replace Kim Il-su.
True to his word, food awaited inside.
Mostly light snacks perfect for chatting over, but in quantities enough to sate a real hunger.
Crunch-.
Hwang Gyu-seong bit into a cookie and propped his leg up against the innermost bookshelf, lounging casually.
"Kill Kim Il-su?"
His posture was brazen, utterly natural.
The kind of attitude born only from ironclad confidence in one's power.
"Tempting offer. But how?"
"You'll have to do it yourself, Mr. Hwang."
"Turning me into your pawn? Sounds good. Nice and straightforward—puts my mind at ease."
"We'll set the stage for you."
Hwang Gyu-seong had known it from the start. Lee Won-jae chose him because he needed a devastating blow against Kim Il-su.
"Pawn's a harsh word. This fight—you lose, and it's game over for you."
"Flattery won't sweeten the deal. Fine. You handle the setup. But until it kicks off, I'm a dead man. Got it?"
"Understood. I'll remember."
A question mark floated over Cha Min-woo's expression.
What did that even mean? A dead man?
In truth, he'd lived like one for over twenty years. Cha Min-woo had assumed some reason behind it, but this conversation made clear it was Hwang Gyu-seong's own choice.
Some untold story lingered between the two.
He wanted to ask, but he let it go.
No way he'd get an answer anyway.
"Date set?"
"The day the Grand Competition begins."
The festival was nearly upon them.
And Lee Won-jae had cooked up a special event for it.
"That's where we kill him. Kim Il-su."
Half a day had passed since the trial ended.
The moment Lee Soo-hyuk reached the prepared lodging, he crashed into sleep. Mental exhaustion weighed on him like lead, forcing his eyes shut.
Even upon waking, Unhyang and Cheongryang were nowhere in sight.
They'd insisted they'd arrive first.
[Unhyang: Something came up. Running a bit late. Rest up ^^]
A message complete with an emoji she rarely used.
Something was definitely going on.
'Not another visitor.'
His first thought upon reading it was the recent fiasco.
The warriors from Shinryeonseong who'd come to drag Unhyang away.
Among them, Jaunyeop—one of the Grand Competition team members.
They'd fended them off somehow, but Jaunyeop had walked away alive that day.
If he'd returned for Unhyang...
But luckily, the bad feeling proved wrong.
Someone had visited, though.
"Reinhardt?"
Lee Soo-hyuk echoed Unhyang's words as she returned to the lodging.
A name he hadn't seen coming. He'd figured something happened, but Reinhardt?
"Why'd that guy seek out the manager?"
"Why do you think? You, obviously."
A hint of sulk laced Cheongryang's tone. Unhyang pinched her slightly pouting lips and jumped in.
"Streamers' business always goes through the manager. Proper channels."
"This wasn't business."
"Huh?"
Unhyang's eyes went wide at Lee Soo-hyuk's words.
"You know what it was?"
"Got a hunch."
"So it really was..."
"Yeah."
No reason to hide it from them.
"I killed him. Isaac."
"Whoa..."
Unhyang's grip slackened; Cheongryang gaped in stunned silence, jaw on the floor.
"So Reinhardt's the only innocent one here?"
Reinhardt's rage over his son's vengeance wasn't misplaced. If anything, Unhyang and Cheongryang had been naive, blindly trusting Lee Soo-hyuk.
"What happened?"
"He tried to kill me."
That said...
From Lee Soo-hyuk's view, the guy deserved it.
"So I returned the favor."
Lee Soo-hyuk gave a quick rundown of the old grudge.
The harassment etched in memory, even if indirect. The antagonism from their first encounter. The assault that crossed every line.
Cheongryang's take was blunt.
"Guy had it coming."
Unhyang nodded in agreement beside her.
"Think Reinhardt would've backed off hearing that?"
"No chance."
"That certain?"
"I know the type."
Reinhardt was a veteran ranker, competing in Grand Competitions for years. Back then, Lee Soo-hyuk had crossed swords with him more than once.
Whatever beef existed between him and Isaac? Not Reinhardt's concern.
"You must binge my streams."
The two, oblivious to that history, could only assume as much.
Explanation done, Lee Soo-hyuk sipped his tea, eyeing Unhyang.
He felt bad dragging her into his mess, but curiosity burned too hot to ignore.
"He give you trouble?"
Pfft-.
Unhyang, mid-sip and thinking it over, sprayed tea across Lee Soo-hyuk's face.
He wiped the dampness from his face with one hand.
"Ah, uh... sorry..."
"No harm done. Tricky question, I guess."
"Not that... just so sudden..."
"Hold on. That's a dish rag, right?"
Unhyang stammered, flustered beyond hiding.
She'd grabbed a dishcloth to dab his face instead of a handkerchief.
'Something's up.'
It felt off.
Lee Soo-hyuk had done his homework on Reinhardt. Killing Isaac meant a clash was inevitable someday.
Sure, he'd earned a ridiculous nickname after losing, but Reinhardt wasn't dismissible.
More years as a ranker than him, with knowledge and experience forging a true master magic swordsman.
No way Unhyang—even matching Jaunyeop—could handle him.
'Doesn't wanna talk.'
This time, she fetched a real towel. As he wiped his face, Lee Soo-hyuk chose not to dig deeper.
His secrets stayed secret; hers could too.
"Business time?"
Cheongryang pivoted the topic sharply.
Just what Lee Soo-hyuk wanted. He set the towel down, playing dumb with a nod.
"Let's."
"Bottom line: massive success."
Prep done ahead, she flicked on a screen with the stats.
"Peak viewers topped 90K, average 60K. Still climbing too."
"Collab worked wonders."
One key difference from last stream.
Pak Soo-hyuk collab. Attention skyrocketed from there.
"Pak Soo-hyuk collab nailed it, trial theme perfect. Process and payoff? Chef's kiss."
Everything flawless—except one thing.
"Downside's the revenue..."
Stream earnings.
"Baehae doesn't mind. Donations are all yours."
"Fair."
"Baehae's take. Not mine."
Baehae staff or not, Unhyang rooted for Lee Soo-hyuk's wins harder than anyone. Points were his main drive for streaming, after all.
"Small missions add up decently. Donations dipped from last time, sure."
"Skipped the big payout mission."
Bergelmir seal disruption scenario. Hit mid-mission.
Points-wise, safe Valhalla trial made sense. But no way.
Points urgent or not, couldn't risk derailing the trial.
"Still, stayed true to the trial. Great reception proves it."
Cheongryang pulled up a company message.
New contract signed. Details below.
"Ad rates jacked up. Big sponsors too."
"Big ones?"
"Saint Lorec brand. Gear for quasi-rankers."
Quasi-rankers: floor 7 climbers like him.
"Heard of 'em?"
"Who hasn't?"
Saint Lorec rang bells from his active days. Mass-produced solid gear.
"Not thrilled."
Ads meant demoing gear on stream.
No plans to deck out in mass-market stuff for the trial.
"600K points."
Lee Soo-hyuk's eyes widened.
600,000 points.
Too juicy to ignore.
"Big corps don't mess around."
"Mull it over. Time's on our side."
Baehae couldn't pass it up either. Ads split fees, unlike pure donations.
600K points swirled in his head. Then, inspiration struck.
"Can we use that ad for non-trial content?"
On-stream use should suffice.
"Other content? Probably... Next one's locked in?"
"Yep."
Not recent—planned ages ago.
The players' fatigue-fueled festival.
"The Grand Competition."
Preliminaries loomed close.