Chapter 27
Chapter 27
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 27
Chapter Title: The Path Lightning Walks
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The name of this stage was The Path Lightning Walks.
That was all he knew about this place.
Inside the massive door stretched an endless expanse of pure white space, so long it was impossible to see where it ended.
"They said there was definitely lightning hidden here..."
No one would hear him anyway, so he muttered without adjusting his mic.
"Nothing here?"
A vast white space so utterly empty it was bewildering.
But that couldn't be right.
'It's not that there's nothing here—it's just made to look that way.'
This was a trial.
And he was a Player who had to accomplish something here.
He needed to find the clues.
'Don't gloss over the name.'
Fifth stage, legend. And the stage name: The Path Lightning Walks.
With only the name given, the hint had to be in there.
Lee Soo-hyuk scanned his surroundings. He rolled his eyes, turned his head. His field of view didn't change.
Sssrk—.
Thinking it was the same whether his eyes were open or closed, Soo-hyuk simply shut them.
'This isn't a trial you solve with your eyes.'
Then there was only one way.
Find what wasn't visible.
Chijjit—.
Eyes closed, he felt his surroundings with his body. Slightly ahead, a faint familiar sensation.
His skin prickled. Something was flowing through this space.
He opened his eyes again and searched the floor for a loose stone.
He needed confirmation.
Soo-hyuk picked up a small stone.
'A classic method, but...'
What choice did he have?
For a classic Player from the classics, classic methods fit best.
Shiiik—.
He hurled the stone with all his might toward the long white path ahead.
And then.
Pajijijik—!
With a burst of sparks, the stone Soo-hyuk threw blackened and burned mid-flight.
The sight of the pebble popping like popcorn amid deafening sparks in empty air was utterly shocking.
A flood of questions poured in.
It was natural for curiosity to spike when the trial's nature was unclear.
As the chat exploded, Soo-hyuk explained what he'd just learned from his action.
"It's lightning."
Soo-hyuk nodded.
"Just like the map name. Walk through the lightning..."
Jeobeok—.
With those words, he slowly stepped forward into the depths.
Then.
Chijjit, chijijjit—.
A stinging tingle prickling his skin.
It felt more than familiar—practically friendly.
This place was filled with invisible lightning everywhere.
"Looks like this trial's theme is 'endurance'."
Pajit—!
Reaching out his hand, it bounced back like the stone amid sparks.
Soo-hyuk fiddled with his numb fingertips and spoke in disbelief.
"The trial's telling me to just die?"
He said it jokingly, but it wasn't a joke.
Even nearby, the lightning concentration was considerable.
From the stone test, deeper in was far worse.
Endure this and go inside?
It was no different from being told to kill himself.
"Ridiculous..."
Soo-hyuk stood silently for a moment.
He looked hesitant to anyone watching.
And then, briefly.
The message he'd been waiting for.
In that instant, Soo-hyuk's lips curled up in the darkness.
Kkiirik—.
On a rickety old chair teetering perilously.
Si-woo and Ye-ryeong sat facing each other, gauging reactions.
Or rather, Si-woo was gauging Ye-ryeong's.
"What're you doing?"
Umchil—.
Ye-ryeong's question made Si-woo's shoulders twitch slightly.
Si-woo subtly flipped over the Player Kit in his hand to hide it and asked back.
"W-what about you?"
"Just the usual."
Ye-ryeong turned the Kit screen away as she continued.
"Don't get the wrong idea—I'm not watching that stream anymore. I really quit."
"Ah... Yeah, sure."
"Why's your response so weird?"
Si-woo broke into a cold sweat at Ye-ryeong's puzzled look.
His gaze flicked to the Player Kit in his hand.
'Because I'm the one watching it right now.'
He couldn't say it.
After chewing her out to stop watching Lee Soo-hyuk streams, admitting he was doing it now?
Too embarrassing to admit.
"Nah, just... good job."
An awkward lie.
Ye-ryeong, who had eyed him suspiciously, soon lost interest.
Calming his pounding heart, Si-woo refocused on the stream.
"They said there was definitely lightning hidden here... Nothing here?"
The trial arena was pure white. Nothing visible but the rapidly scrolling chat—the only thing moving.
'What are they supposed to do there? I wanna go myself.'
If he were there, he'd find something for sure.
This trial was surely about finding something invisible.
But streams only showed visuals. And this trial excluded those.
A brief frown of frustration.
Then he saw Lee Soo-hyuk pick something up.
'A pebble?'
Quaaaeak—.
The sound of it slicing through air fast.
Right after, following Soo-hyuk's gaze, a bright light flashed on screen.
Pajijijik—!
Golden lightning exploding.
In that moment, Si-woo's eyes sparkled.
'Lightning.'
He'd found the clue.
As expected.
"Just like the map name. Walk through the lightning..."
'Yes, that's it!'
Seeing the streamer think the same as him, Si-woo felt the thrill of watching a stream for the first time in his life.
He'd just challenged the 2nd floor, right?
Talent was off the charts. Skill aside, no hesitation or stumbles in tackling the trial.
And moreover.
"The trial's telling me to just die?"
The casual jokes laced with leisure peeking through.
'Just like Soo-hyuk...'
It even sparked a fanciful thought: maybe he really was that guy's reincarnation.
He got why Ye-ryeong had been hooked, feeling a twinge of guilt as he glanced at her.
But.
'Still, I don't think he can do this.'
The blackened pebble showed it.
How much lightning flowed deeper in.
No 2nd-floor Player could endure that.
High-floor Players' bodies were said to harden like rock or steel, but this streamer was just a 2nd-floor rookie.
A fledgling Player, essentially.
'Well, he beat the Giant Tribe leader, so the linked trial has to be harder.'
No room to complain about difficulty.
Trials rewarded greater feats with bigger prizes, and they'd already given this streamer the gold of lightning.
This was next.
No way it'd be easy.
But.
'If it's that guy...'
"No trial can't be cleared."
Soo-hyuk's habitual line whenever facing obstacles.
He never knew defeat. Even when they hesitated on the Hydra raid, Soo-hyuk had been confident.
"What's to worry? I'm gonna win anyway."
And he had.
Without Kim Il-su's betrayal, he would've been a true hero.
Lee Soo-hyuk never stopped challenging.
No giving up—he always pulled through in the end.
That was the real Lee Soo-hyuk.
'What choice will you make?'
Si-woo's eyes sparkled as he watched.
Death in trials didn't mean true death.
But the penalty reset rewards from the prior stage.
For this streamer, losing his hard-earned lightning—the worst penalty.
'Challenge it? Or stop here?'
The screen was frozen.
Streamer Lee Soo-hyuk hesitated on the challenge. Clearly different from the Soo-hyuk Si-woo knew.
His expectations slowly cooled.
At that moment.
Top right of the screen.
A message popped with the sponsorship.
A cascade of messages.
Some urged caution, but most were missions egging him on.
Of course.
Viewers wanted the most stimulating, entertaining trials.
Especially expecting the living legend Lee Soo-hyuk to clear everything before him.
And the next moment.
"Everyone."
He'd made his choice.
"Thanks for the sponsorships."
A confident reply, as if he'd already cleared the mission.
It resembled the Soo-hyuk he knew, but...
'This guy's been planning to challenge from the start.'
The reason for the pause was worlds apart.
Points.
The currency of this world, Players' lifeline.
Everyone loved money—no surprise. Streaming was a job, jobs earned cash.
But the Soo-hyuk Si-woo knew never risked life for points.
"Great Players don't chase money—money chases them," he'd say.
'Different. From Soo-hyuk.'
Si-woo knew it too.
This stream was just a Lee Soo-hyuk copycat gimmick.
Mimicking his speech, actions more meticulously than anyone, after getting lightning.
At root, just a guy selling his friend's image for points.
"You and me, both squirming in that bastard Lee Soo-hyuk's shadow."
Words he'd spat yesterday echoed.
'You idiot. What the hell are you doing?'
Anger at himself surged.
He knew it all.
This wasn't real Soo-hyuk. The guy who'd cleared floor 8 wouldn't do a 2nd-floor trial, let alone stream his image for points.
For him, revenge on Kim Il-su mattered more than points.
'What was I expecting?'
Si-woo snapped out of his delusion.
And that instant.
Jeobeok—.
On screen.
Streamer Lee Soo-hyuk began walking the path of lightning.