Chapter 189
Chapter 189
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 189
Chapter Title: Unhyang's Return and the Big Mouth Deal
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The person who returned first was Unhyang.
A disheveled appearance with hollow eyes. Her pale complexion was one I hadn't seen in years.
It had been far too long since I'd seen her looking like this.
"When we go eat tanghwa!"
That was probably the last time.
"...Where have you been, showing up now?"
"Did it take a while?"
"You're definitely not early."
"Sorry, sorry. I got a little lost on the way."
Lost her way?
That was absolutely not the case. She wasn't the type to be impeccably neat at all times, but she definitely wasn't the sort to wander around unwashed like this either.
She must have rushed here in a hurry. And even though she was late, there had to be a good reason for it.
"Anyway, why are you here alone? Where's Soo-hyuk-nim?"
"He hasn't come back yet."
"Still sleeping?"
"No. There's been no word since he headed up to the 8th floor. I want to go look for him, but I don't even have the qualifications..."
This was as far as Cheongryang could go. Only Soo-hyuk and Unhyang had the right to climb to the 8th floor.
"Did things go well on your trip?"
"What would go well? I just went to find some inspiration."
"Still, it feels different. It's the first time, isn't it? That you've truly decided to do it yourself."
Up until now, Unhyang had never learned martial arts on her own.
From childhood, learning martial arts or climbing the tower—it had all been a life forced upon her by others.
But now, for the first time, she had begun to move of her own accord. Even doing the same task, a change in mindset could alter everything.
"Yeah. It did."
Even though it was good news that she'd achieved results, Unhyang's expression and voice were bitter.
"Really pissing me off, but that guy's words were right."
"...What words?"
Cheongryang couldn't make sense of what Unhyang was saying.
'That guy'—whatever Uncheon-geuk had said to her. Whenever it came to that topic, Unhyang always clammed up.
And that was unfamiliar to Cheongryang. They'd been together since infancy, knowing everything about each other.
"There's, that kind of thing."
Thud-.
Unhyang strode over and collapsed into the seat across from Cheongryang.
"Ah~ I'm so tired~!"
The child who had shouted for tanghwa had grown into an adult and returned. Seeing her break free from the cage she'd imposed on herself, Cheongryang had a gut feeling.
This moment might just be the turning point in her life.
After a quick bath, Unhyang passed out right in Cheongryang's room. She must have been exhausted, falling asleep without eating or even waiting for Soo-hyuk.
Soo-hyuk returned right after she dozed off.
There was no time to grill him about being late. The two hurried off to complete their registration for the inter-guild confrontation.
"That was close."
Cheongryang finally let out a sigh of relief. Then she glanced at Soo-hyuk's appearance.
'This guy's no different.'
As if they'd been together until moments ago, both Unhyang and Soo-hyuk looked equally wrecked.
The difference was that Unhyang looked like she'd rolled through mud, while Soo-hyuk was a mess of scorch marks everywhere.
No need to ask why he was late.
He must have spent the same kind of time as Unhyang.
"Sorry for being late."
"No need to apologize. We made it in time, that's what matters."
"Where's Unhyang-ssi?"
They were even identical in immediately asking about each other's well-being upon return.
"She's sleeping now. She got back a bit ago."
"Got back? From where?"
"It's a long story..."
Long? It was also hard to explain. That was a story for Unhyang to tell herself.
"Hear it directly from Unhyang when she wakes up."
"Sure."
Soo-hyuk nodded. It wasn't that urgent, so it didn't matter when he heard it.
Belatedly, Soo-hyuk asked about what had happened while he was away.
"Nothing much in the meantime, right?"
"Taking a break from streaming with the confrontation right around the corner, so viewers are understanding. As for anything notable... one person was looking for you, Soo-hyuk-nim."
"Me? Who?"
"Big Mouth."
Big Mouth. He was an issue-focused reporter with ties to Hawk's Eye and a major streamer.
A man who covered the tower's biggest events. It wasn't strange for a capable player like him to seek out Soo-hyuk.
After all, streamer Lee Soo-hyuk was the hottest topic in the tower right now.
"Everything else was guild recruitment stuff... no need to mention that, right?"
Soo-hyuk nodded again.
Guild joining issues held no value to consider, past or present.
It wasn't about conditions or pay. Knowing his comrades were still alive, Soo-hyuk would always make the same choice.
"What exactly is Big Mouth like?"
"The team leader compiled a file on that. Want to check it on the way?"
"Yes."
Cheongryang handed the received data to Soo-hyuk. The player kit-transmitted file contained various details on streamer Big Mouth.
'He's started covering issues related to me recently.'
There were plenty of articles on streamer Lee Soo-hyuk.
Beyond his fame as a streamer, he was the first to reach the 8th floor this quickly—a natural outcome.
Big Mouth's interest was no different.
His approach to Soo-hyuk was surely to snag scoops faster and in greater volume than others.
"If he's an issue specialist streamer, he must have wide connections, right?"
"Probably."
"And a ton of high-level intel too."
A question flickered across Cheongryang's face at Soo-hyuk's words. Knowing his personality, she'd expected an immediate rejection, but surprisingly, he seemed interested.
"Conveniently, he's nearby."
As an issue streamer, Big Mouth had come here to watch the inter-guild confrontation.
"Let's meet him."
Up to now, he'd focused on climbing the tower, streaming, and accumulating points. He lacked power, and information without sufficient power was just useless scrap paper.
What makes information valuable is the power to wield it.
And over the past times, Soo-hyuk had finally acquired the minimum power he'd deemed necessary.
'I lack information.'
From now on, what he needed was intel.
Soo-hyuk read the data on Big Mouth over and over.
While contacting Big Mouth and waiting, Soo-hyuk settled the revenue from his recent streams.
"This is the post-paid ad fee, this is the revenue from the extra videos uploaded to the Players channel, and this is..."
As his streams grew, so did the ways to generate revenue.
Added to the mission payout from the last stream, plus ad revenue, video earnings, and incoming ads—this batch alone exceeded 1 million points.
He confirmed his accumulated points while donning a new mask. Soo-hyuk and Cheongryang entered a cafe with a cool breeze and took seats.
"You'll be rich in no time. Or maybe you already are?"
To Cheongryang, who was always scraping by in poverty, the points Soo-hyuk earned felt utterly unreal.
Of course, Soo-hyuk was struggling with poverty too.
"I hope so."
Skills that devoured points weren't popular among players. It wasn't that their effects were weak, but their cost-performance was poor.
With the same points, it was far better to equip superior gear than to level up a skill.
'This is just burning money.'
Even so, Soo-hyuk had no choice.
Selfish Sacrifice was his hope for overcoming Lightning's penalty.
So he had no option but to keep earning points and pour them into the bottomless pit.
Ting-.
At that moment, the cafe's entry bell chimed.
"Ah, there you are."
Big Mouth spotted Soo-hyuk and approached.
With his flashy mask, he must have stood out immediately in the cafe.
"Nice to meet you. I'm Roasted, going by the nickname Big Mouth. Feel free to use whatever name's comfortable."
"I'm Lee Soo-hyuk."
"Manager Cheongryang."
"You contacted me?"
"Yes."
Soon, Big Mouth ordered a drink. From the moment he entered, he'd been eyeing Soo-hyuk with keen interest.
"Seeing you in person is surreal. Meeting the tower's hottest topic like this."
"You're pretty famous yourself, Big Mouth-nim."
"I'm just scraping by, leeching off streamers like Lee Soo-hyuk."
He navigated with an affable demeanor. Lowering himself while elevating the other, shaping the relationship to his liking.
No harm in going along with it.
Right now, they both had something they wanted from each other.
After brief introductions, once Big Mouth's drink arrived, Soo-hyuk cut to the chase.
"So, why did you want to meet?"
"Straight to business—love the fire."
After sipping his drink to wet his throat, Big Mouth laid it out.
"I want an exclusive interview with streamer Lee Soo-hyuk."
"Exclusive meaning?"
"Yes. Not just this once. Ongoing from here on—I'd like you to give me your number-one interviews."
It wasn't an outrageous demand.
Doing interviews didn't wear anything out or make it disappear, so he could oblige anytime.
"If any question rubs you wrong, just skip it. In return, if it's something you can say somewhere, give me the first shot."
"That's really all?"
"Yes."
A proposal with zero downside. No— it might even benefit him.
Big Mouth was among the top issue streamers, with the power not just to cover news but to create it.
Gaining access to Big Mouth as a mouthpiece was something others would pay dearly for.
"I want to invest in streamer Lee Soo-hyuk's future."
Big Mouth knew it too.
Just how valuable his interviews were.
Yet here he was, bending low—because he valued streamer Lee Soo-hyuk that highly.
More precisely, not his present self, but his future.
"...I see."
Soo-hyuk nodded.
"Alright. Let's do it."
"Really?"
"But I'll have my terms."
Finally, Soo-hyuk stated his condition. Unsure what it would be, Big Mouth tensed up momentarily.
"I want to tap into Big Mouth-nim's information network."
"Your info network?"
"Yes. Whatever intel you have—don't hold anything back."
"Everything?"
Big Mouth's expression twisted subtly for a moment.
As an issue streamer, he had vast networks—and Soo-hyuk was essentially asking him to hand it all over.
But even so, Soo-hyuk was pushing a demanding condition.
"If you weigh it out, you won't lose a thing."
The reason was simple.
He judged this trade wouldn't cost Big Mouth at all.
Especially against an issue streamer.
"From now on, I'm going to change this tower."
Every step he took toward reclaiming past glory and revenge would become massive scoop material.