Chapter 89
Chapter 89
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 89
Chapter Title: The Recruiter from Blue Zone
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Soo-hyuk glanced around for a moment.
The center of the plaza.
It was late, so there were no people around. He couldn't sense any presence, and right now, it was just him and his opponent.
Something felt off.
"Who the hell are you?"
"Jeong Yu-han. From Blue Zone. Quasi-ranker."
Soo-hyuk's eyebrows twitched beneath his mask.
He didn't like the Blue Zone affiliation, but the guy's tone grated on him even more.
His self-introduction was full of pompous flair. Putting the massive Blue Zone guild name aside, he had deliberately thrown in the term 'quasi-ranker.'
A quasi-ranker meant at least floor 7.
Among them, it referred to players on the verge of reaching floor 8.
'So they sent someone with real credentials.'
His personality seemed sloppy, but if that claim was true, he wasn't someone to underestimate.
Reaching that level as a single player was no feat for ordinary folk.
"What do you think? Feel like talking now?"
"Talking about what?"
"Don't play dumb when you already know. You've heard, right?"
Jeong Yu-han snorted.
"Join Blue Zone. We won't skimp on the treatment."
"A scout?"
"Yeah. Heard you turned us down a few times? Trying to drive up your price?"
Having tasted the perks of a major guild, Jeong Yu-han assumed Soo-hyuk's rejections stemmed from something else.
Like trying to inflate his value even more to get into the guild.
"The guild's already signaled they're open to that. Talk details with the vice guild master."
"Vice guild master?"
"Yeah. Yi Won-jae."
Yi Won-jae.
He was Blue Zone's vice guild master, a high ranker who'd reached floor 9.
A place even past-life Soo-hyuk hadn't attained.
An existence ordinary players couldn't even face.
But.
'That punk's the vice guild master now?'
From Soo-hyuk's perspective, Yi Won-jae was little more than a greenhorn who'd trailed after Kim Il-su long ago.
Even if he was now hailed as a great player who'd reached floor 9.
'That guy wants me...'
No, more precisely, he wanted the power of Lightning.
But.
"Nah, pass."
The more he thought about it, the less Soo-hyuk wanted anything to do with Blue Zone.
He had no intention of joining any guild, but if it was Blue Zone?
Even if someone held a knife to his throat and ordered him, he wouldn't go.
It would be a betrayal.
'To those guys.'
Jeong Yu-han's smirking face hardened at Soo-hyuk's firm refusal.
Not even a 'sure, I'll join right away' or 'I'll at least meet him.'
This response wasn't even on his mental checklist.
"...Hey, didn't you hear? Who I said was calling for you?"
"Yi Won-jae?"
"'Yi'?"
"What, should I use honorifics? Not my boss. Stranger to me."
It wasn't wrong.
But even so, no one spoke of Yi Won-jae with such disrespect.
No, they couldn't.
He was one of the rulers dominating this vast world. A living legend among players, having reached floor 8 in the same era as Soo-hyuk.
Yet this attitude toward such a man.
"...Looks like you ate something bad."
"Haven't eaten a thing, so I'm starving. I answered, so relay it clearly. I'm out."
Step-.
Soo-hyuk turned and started walking away immediately.
But after just a few steps.
"Where you going?"
In those few steps, Jeong Yu-han stopped him again.
"We aren't done talking."
Soo-hyuk sighed inwardly, hoping it'd end there.
Of course.
If he were the type to back off easily with words, they wouldn't have sent him.
No matter how big Blue Zone was, a quasi-ranker was valuable manpower.
Yet they sent Jeong Yu-han specifically, meaning.
They were prepared to use force if needed.
"So?"
"Come with me for now."
"And if I don't want to?"
"Your opinion doesn't matter."
As expected.
Soo-hyuk nodded. He'd braced for this.
One silver lining: Blue Zone branded itself as a justice-upholding mega guild.
And Jeong Yu-han seemed deeply loyal to them.
"Gonna cause a scene here?"
Soo-hyuk asked, scanning the surroundings.
It was an empty lot, but prolonged noise would draw eyes.
And having the streamer currently rising on floor 4 at the center of the commotion wouldn't go quietly.
However.
Jeong Yu-han didn't seem to care.
"Anyway—."
Mid-sentence, the voice's distance shifted oddly.
"It'll be over quick."
The voice was suddenly right up close.
Crackle-.
At that instant, yellow light spread across the dark lot.
Snap-.
Jeong Yu-han's hand grasped at empty air. Soo-hyuk's body launched forward like a slingshot, restoring the distance.
He'd slipped free using Lightning for instant mobility.
"Quick, what was that?"
"......"
Jeong Yu-han's mouth shut. Even in the dark, his face seemed to flush red.
Quite embarrassing.
"Still... not bad. You've got some chops."
Jeong Yu-han revised his inner assessment of Soo-hyuk.
'Talent-wise, better than prime Lee Soo-hyuk, was it?'
Streamer Hawk's Eye's evaluation.
Jeong Yu-han had wondered if it was overly generous because they were from the same agency.
And he wasn't alone.
Many players still thought the same. Even the scarecrow test might've been rigged, some believed.
But.
Jeong Yu-han wasn't naive enough to deny what his eyes saw.
"A bit embarrassing, but......"
Whoosh-.
Mana rapidly spread from Jeong Yu-han's toes outward.
Fwoosh-!
Soo-hyuk flinched momentarily but realized evasion or blocking wasn't needed.
This skill wasn't that type.
"Gotta hand it to the vice guild master's foresight."
Step-.
Jeong Yu-han took a step toward Soo-hyuk.
"He saw this far."
Sounds around them echoed strangely.
Like bouncing off walls, muffled and oppressive.
Soo-hyuk could guess the skill type.
'Silas. Silence-type, sound-blocking field skill.'
Analyzing swiftly, he realized escaping this situation just got harder.
'Troublesome.'
Normally, a bit of noise would've forced the opponent to back off.
No upside in letting it spread far.
'Half-measures won't cut it.'
This was a quasi-ranker.
Floor 7, nearly 8.
Three more trials cleared than him, by simple math. A gap even Soo-hyuk couldn't easily bridge.
Crackle-.
He summoned Lightning from within.
Selfish Sacrifice activated, boosting lightning output.
'Amp up Lightning, borrow the item's power too.'
Shing-.
Drawing the sword revealed the Nameless Demon Sword's red blade.
A relic from floor 1, but crafted by demon swordsmith Kindre.
He'd never maxed its power before.
But no time for pickiness now.
A sensation of muscles tearing finely coursed through his body. Paradoxically, it felt light as if floating, brimming with power.
His whole body tingled.
But with power surging through every inch, confidence welled up.
The last two days of grueling trials had paid off.
Just the stats from rank-ups totaled 37 points.
Floor 4's trial focused on securing basic player stats.
And for Soo-hyuk now, that raw stat power was key.
"Should've come two days sooner."
Step-.
His eyes turned golden as he strode toward Jeong Yu-han.
"You might've even won then."
In front of the dorm.
The pre-dawn air was chilly. Unhyang couldn't stay inside; she paced back and forth in front of the building.
Waiting for Soo-hyuk after his stream, her mood wasn't great.
"Ugh, what do I do......"
Blue Zone's moves to recruit Soo-hyuk were aggressively proactive.
Though he'd told her he refused, people's hearts could change unpredictably.
If Blue Zone offered terms impossible to reject.
'Then, as his manager, what should I do?'
A manager's role was to prioritize the streamer's interests.
That's what John Tail had taught her.
Even if it meant opposing Baehae Entertainment, the manager sides with the streamer.
And by that logic.
"Should I... let him go?"
Blue Zone was a mega guild.
No matter how good streaming was, they ruled this world.
Baehae Entertainment was just one big company with a foot in their domain.
With Soo-hyuk's talent.
He could surely climb high in Blue Zone.
Besides.
Jeong Yu-han's sleazy vibe aside, Unhyang actually liked Blue Zone.
Their guild master had once written legends alongside Lee Soo-hyuk, after all.
'For the streamer's benefit......'
After much deliberation.
"I... should tell him?"
Unhyang resolved to inform Soo-hyuk about today's events.
Even if the company hated her decision.
"Haa-."
Even after deciding, her mood didn't improve.
No.
It darkened further.
If her actions led him to Blue Zone.
And no-dual-job rules or no need for streaming forced him to quit.
She'd regret this choice.
"Maybe I shouldn't say anyth— Huh?"
As she flip-flopped internally dozens of times.
Unhyang's ears perked up.
"Mr. Soo-hyuk?"