Chapter 7
Chapter 7
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ace
Chapter: 7
Chapter Title: A Destroyed Training Ground
-----------------------------------------------------------------
The manager of the training ground was dozing off, propping his chin on his hand.
Training grounds existed on every floor.
But aside from the first floor, hardly any players visited the second floor, which was practically classified as the lowest level.
Moreover, lately more people were shelling out for pricier virtual trial grounds, leaving the place dead as a doornail.
Thanks to that, he could afford to nap like this.
Thud.
"Huh-?"
The manager jolted awake at the sound of footsteps and lifted his head.
It wasn't a new customer.
Staggering footsteps.
It was the guy who'd entered training room 4 about ten minutes ago.
'Time's not up yet.'
Stagger.
The customer's steps were shaky as he exited the training ground.
Watching his retreating back, the manager clicked his tongue and muttered.
"Told you so. No way you'd make it."
The manager stood from his seat and headed into the training ground.
It had only been ten minutes, but cleaning up after users was part of his job.
Creeeak.
He opened the door to training room 4.
He peered inside with eyes still heavy from sleep.
'It's gotta be clean. What could a fresh tutorial grad even do in here...'
The manager's drowsiness vanished the moment he took in the state of the training ground.
He rubbed his eyes, wondering if he was seeing things, but nothing changed.
"Wha-?"
Thud.
Startled, he stumbled back, lost his balance, and fell flat.
He sat there dazed for a moment, taking in the scene before him.
Arrows scattered on the floor, shattered crossbows, spear shafts snapped clean off, and sword gashes everywhere on the walls.
The facilities were a total wreck.
It'd take hours just to clean this up.
"Wh-what the hell happened?"
This wasn't bypassing traps—this was smashing straight through them.
In other words, the work of a player for whom room 4 was a breeze.
'Who the...'
But no matter how he racked his brain, only one person had entered room 4.
"......No way?"
Lee Soo-hyuk crashed in the lodging he'd booked and passed out cold.
Maybe because he'd pushed the demon sword to its fatigue limit—his body ached all over, and his status was a mess.
Full half-day later.
Soo-hyuk, who'd conked out from exhaustion, hurriedly washed up and stepped outside.
'Still pretty stiff.'
A bit of sleep wasn't enough to recover from yesterday's overkill.
Kindre's demon sword was notorious for potentially claiming the user's life if mishandled.
'Guess I should count myself lucky it's just a dud and stopped here.'
He rolled his stiff neck and headed out.
Entered a cafe, paid 30 points for a coffee, and took a seat.
A quiet morning.
Soo-hyuk lifted the steaming cup, recalling yesterday's training ground antics.
'Who'da thought it'd actually work.'
Definitely not the stats of someone fresh out of the tutorial. Still, with stamina at just 16, wielding Kindre's demon sword had been a stretch.
Normally, he probably couldn't have held the thing for even a minute, let alone harness its power properly.
But.
'The stamina drain was way lighter. Let me draw out more of the demon sword's power too.'
Three minutes.
That's how long Soo-hyuk had wielded the demon sword.
The sustainable usage time had jumped noticeably. And while outputting power way beyond his current stats, no less.
A second-floor scrub handling Kindre's demon sword?
Even his past self wouldn't have believed it.
And it was all thanks to the demon sword paired with Selfish Sacrifice.
'This combo works.'
The demon sword and Lightning operated on the same principle.
Consume the user's stamina to unleash greater power. A dead simple mechanic.
If he could mitigate the demon sword's burden, the same went for Lightning. Master this skill properly, and he'd soar.
'The bottleneck's the level, huh.'
Soo-hyuk checked the Selfish Sacrifice skill level he'd invested points into.
E-grade.
The old Soo-hyuk wouldn't have given it a second glance.
Obviously.
Tutorial shops stocked B-grade skills for over 2,000 points.
"......Guess it all boils down to money."
Ten thousand points.
Not a huge sum.
But a massive haul for tutorial earnings, no doubt.
And it'd all vanished in a flash.
Now he needed twenty thousand.
No points on hand, and nobody lending to a fresh second-floor nobody.
'The stronger the skill, the more points it'll demand to level. Right now, I can't even handle a single rare-grade demon sword, let alone Lightning...'
Points were the crux.
Selfish Sacrifice was a rare growth-type skill.
And the only way to upgrade it? Points.
In short: earn cash.
Massive amounts, not pocket change.
"Never thought I'd be stressing over this."
Soo-hyuk sighed and gazed out the window.
Back in Blue Eyes, worries like this never crossed his mind.
Points rolled in passively just by existing.
If he'd actually tried farming them, he could've made multiples more.
But things were different now.
'What can I even do?'
Prioritizing points over stat-ups or skill hunts—what a joke.
"......"
Soo-hyuk stared out the window blankly for a while, his expression gradually twisting.
Then, with sudden conviction, he muttered.
"Nothing."
No ideas came to mind.
Absolutely zilch.
Had he ever even pondered stuff like this?
Points poured in without effort, and he crafted his own gear anyway. Why would he know side hustles?
Frustration soon turned to griping.
"Why points of all things? This ain't some mobile game."
Pay-to-win, after coming this far?
'Climb higher, raid dungeons—points aplenty. But that takes forever.'
Soo-hyuk wanted results now.
Regain his old power, and points would follow naturally—but that was ages off.
He needed something revolutionary.
Seemed his brainpower wasn't cutting it. In desperation, Soo-hyuk pulled out his Player Kit, ready to grasp at straws.
Evidently a popular query—tons of info popped up.
[Earn points in your sleep! Easy 10k/month! Side gig for points...]
[Clean points toto betting. Made 100k myself...]
[Guaranteed high returns! First 3 only...]
Obvious kid-bait scams jumped out first.
Mostly multi-level marketing hustles. Good thing he had the discernment to filter this junk, even if points were burning a hole in his plans.
'No real help here.'
Truth was, the only way for him to earn points right now was climbing the tower.
Pass the trials, keep ascending, and he'd snag points like tutorial rewards.
Of course.
From the second floor on, trials cost entry fees in points.
"Yeah, no other options right now...?"
He was just about to close the kit.
When one headline caught his eye.
'Streaming...?'
Come to think of it, he'd heard of it.
Twenty years back, in his prime.
Some site streaming player broadcasts.
And this body's owner had a vague inkling too.
'Players. System-approved major platform.'
Digging into it, the setup clicked.
His old world had equivalents—no sweat understanding.
'This is straight-up YouTube.'
Reading Players streaming posts, the scent hit him.
Money—no, points scent.
Soo-hyuk's eyes lit up.
A tad annoying, sure.
But he'd found his way.
"Hey, what? Soo-hyuk?"
Right then.
A cafe patron spotted him and approached with feigned cheer.
"You made it up here too?"
A guy with long golden hair down to his shoulders. Sharp, pretty features clashed with his predatory gaze.
Thud, thud.
His stride screamed trouble.
Soo-hyuk's brief excitement plummeted.
He clocked the inexplicable hostility.
"Nice to see ya, punk. Caught you here. Lodging nearby, huh?"
Scrape.
The guy plopped down across from him without asking.
Rude as hell.
Unpleasant, Soo-hyuk frowned and sized up the intruder.
'Where do I know this face from?'
Familiar, yet fuzzy.
Not his memory.
Lee Soo-hyuk's.
This body's recollection.
As he dredged it up...
"Why... why are you doing this?"
"Your name rubs me wrong, you little shit. Got it?"
"My name?"
"Yeah, your name. Lee Soo-hyuk? Same as that jinxed loser's."
A scene flashed in his mind.
Along with the guy's name.
'Isaac.'
Memory slotted in—Soo-hyuk awkwardly scratched his head.
Nothing to apologize for, but guilt nagged anyway.
'Over me, huh?'
Just the name.
Fan or hater, he'd bullied over the shared name, clearly.
Tremble, tremble.
His hands shook faintly.
Like he was scared stiff. Involuntary spasm.
Soo-hyuk met Isaac's eyes.
The guy was still grinning.
What kind of glare was that?
One of utter contempt and dismissal.
"Lodging's the building next door."
"Oh yeah? Wild. Figured trash like you couldn't clear the tutorial. Thought you'd flop on a single goblin."
Isaac was a classmate from the same training academy.
Son of a famous ranker, gifted with talent and fat backing.
"Got lucky."
Soo-hyuk replied dismissively.
Too old to bicker with a brat—pointless headache.
Took it at face value, apparently.
Isaac smirked knowingly and launched into bragging.
"I cleared up to stage 20. Beat Dad's record. Even Supervisor Hueger was singing my praises."
"Oh, cool."
"Reward was a skill. A real banger... "
Isaac yapped on.
Soo-hyuk let it flow in one ear and out the other.
No plans to avenge the body's old beefs. Academy was done—minimal future overlap.
"All that talking dried my throat."
But.
"Buy me a drink?"
This, he couldn't ignore.
Soo-hyuk's blank demeanor sharpened to a glare.
"You're loaded, right? Get your own."
Every point counted for him now.