Chapter 150: A Brief Pause (3)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 150: A Brief Pause (3)
His busy hands finally slowed down.
This was because most of them had filled their bellies, and the additional food orders had stopped coming in.
Crack!
Jinhyuk stretched, loosening his stiff muscles.
"I've made enough. I shouldn't need to cook any more."
Now, it was finally time to satisfy his own hunger.
And while he was at it, he should go chat with his companions who had worked hard.
As he pushed his way through the trolls and headed inside, he spotted a few familiar faces.
"Hyung!"
"Oppa!"
Lee Tae-min and Yu Yeon-hwa, their faces flushed red from the alcohol, waved at him.
"Over here! Come sit here."
Teresa also shifted over to make some room for him.
It was a relief to see everyone safe and sound.
Well, except for one thing.
"……."
Except for the leech sitting there with a sullen pout.
"Hey. I'm here. Hello? I said I'm here."
"……."
He still didn't even look at him.
It was as if Jinhyuk were a ghost.
It seemed the guy had completely erased Jinhyuk's very existence from his mind.
"Is it because I made you go through all that trouble with the Chinese players? Or is it because I made you recite the lines I wrote for them?"
"……You bastard……!"
Cheon Yu-seong's pupils dilated rapidly.
Finally, a reaction.
"Are you seriously sulking over that? Come on, be a man. Things went smoothly because of it, so it's all good."
"Do you have any idea how much embarrassment I had to endure to pull off that stunt? Do you even know what it feels like to recite lines so cringeworthy that I can never show my face again?!"
Cheon Yu-seong raised his voice.
His chest heaved violently.
He was clearly worked up, to the point where a few nearby trolls turned around in surprise.
But here's the thing.
"Yeah. I know exactly how it feels."
Jinhyuk nodded nonchalantly.
Who did Yu-seong think he was talking to?
Embarrassment? Shame? Public humiliation?
Jinhyuk had accumulated enough of those to overflow his Naver Cloud storage.
Starting with "It's high noon" and Colonel Teemo, he was the one who had written countless dark histories of cringe.
To put it bluntly, he had once roamed the Tower wearing nothing but a trench coat with a cigar in his mouth. What on earth could possibly scare him now?
Damn it.
For some reason, saying it out loud made him feel a bit sad, but Jinhyuk quickly brushed the feeling aside.
"……Right. It was my mistake to bring up pride or honor to someone like you. I was the fool."
"Ahem."
"That wasn't…… a compliment!"
Cheon Yu-seong ground his teeth.
Since he was always on the receiving end, it was only natural that he had a lot of pent-up frustration.
Indeed, it seemed necessary to throw him a bone once in a while.
I planned to avoid employee welfare as much as possible, but I guess I have to spend when the time is right.
After all, Yu-seong was technically one of the outside directors of Veteran Corporation, and it wouldn't do to have him harbor hostility toward the company.
"Whew. Fine. You've worked hard, so I'll grant you one thing you want. Tell me. What is it?"
"Something I want?"
"Yeah."
As Jinhyuk nodded, Cheon Yu-seong stood up as if there was no need to even think about it.
The sword at his waist was already drawn and pointed forward.
So this was what they meant by a chilling blade.
"Why ask the obvious? Draw your weapon right now."
"Hey, you meathead. We almost died fighting just a moment ago, and you want to fight again? Besides, wasn't your goal to defeat me in front of a crowd?"
Look around.
Where are all these "people" you speak of?
With nothing but trolls surrounding them, whoever won would only end up with a hollow victory.
They could record it and upload it, but that wasn't the way Cheon Yu-seong wanted it.
Just like when we fought at the ball. He'd prefer a proper stage and a real audience.
Jinhyuk exploited Cheon Yu-seong's psychology.
Cheon Yu-seong lowered his sword slightly.
"……Then, what are you proposing?"
"A duel doesn't always have to be a life-or-death 1v1, does it?"
This wasn't the Roman Colosseum.
Brutally swinging swords wasn't the only way to settle things.
"Are you saying we should compete in a different way?"
"Yeah. For example…… Ah! A hunting competition sounds good. We have to eat tomorrow anyway, so whoever catches the stronger and bigger prey wins. How about it?"
"……Fine. This time, I will prove once and for all that I am superior."
Cheon Yu-seong nodded.
His eyes blazed with determination, a complete 180 from his demeanor just moments ago.
"Yu-seong hyung. I feel like you're just going to suffer and lose again anyway, so why don't you just give up?"
"Yeah. Oppa, you're no match for Jinhyuk oppa."
Having apparently dropped formalities at some point, Lee Tae-min and Yu Yeon-hwa chimed in.
"Yu-seong, do your best."
On the other hand, Teresa clenched her fists and offered him words of encouragement.
Watching this heartwarming scene made Jinhyuk feel all warm inside.
Jinhyuk smiled warmly like a proud father, his lips curling upward.
"Just so you know, the strongest and most delicious prey on the 7th floor are mostly in the water. Marine species are hard to catch, but they taste amazing."
The Sea Dragon Titelos.
Measuring over ten meters long, it was extremely ferocious, but its firm and chewy flesh—resembling eel—made it a highly beloved ingredient among veterans.
"I don't need your advice. I know that much."
"Of course. How could the great Sword Saint not know?"
"Go ahead, keep laughing. Because I'll be the one to catch the biggest Sea Dragon."
While Jinhyuk smirked, Cheon Yu-seong activated a skill.
[Cheon Yu-seong activates Lv.7 'Body-Protecting Aura'!]
A faint light enveloped his entire body.
Normally, 'Body-Protecting Aura' was used to block enemy attacks.
However, the Body-Protecting Aura Cheon Yu-seong practiced could also be used to protect his body from water pressure or store a small amount of oxygen, thanks to his unique inner qi.
With that, the conditions for underwater activity were met.
Cheon Yu-seong dove into the water without hesitation.
Splash!
The waves rippled for a moment, but only briefly.
Cheon Yu-seong vanished into the depths of the sea in an instant.
"Aren't you going in, Jinhyuk?"
Teresa, who had been watching, tilted her head in confusion.
In a hunting competition, time was of the essence.
The faster you moved, the better your chances of finding good prey and securing a favorable position.
It was common sense.
If…….
...one actually intended to compete, that is.
"Hmm. Let's just say he wins this match. I forfeit."
Jinhyuk shrugged.
"What?"
"I said, I lose."
Why would he dive into that freezing water? To freeze to death?
He absolutely refused to risk his life fighting sea monsters in salty water.
"N-No way. Was this your plan from the very beginning? To make Cheon Yu-seong hunt all by himself?"
"I happened to be craving sea eel. There's nothing better for restoring one's stamina. And since he gets to win the match, isn't this a win-win?"
"I don't think…… he would be happy with such a hollow victory, though?"
Probably not.
But.
"Well, you can't have everything in life. He should actually thank me for teaching him such a valuable lesson. Ahem. Anyway, the water is really deep and dark. Just looking at it makes my bones feel frozen."
Jinhyuk clicked his tongue as he looked at the lake.
And.
The faces of everyone watching Jinhyuk were distorted with shock and horror.
—As expected of Hyung…… No, actually, this is just like him.
—Yu-seong oppa is an idiot. I told him not to agree to any duels. Why does he never learn to give up when he gets crushed every single time?
—Hang in there, Yu-seong. I've been there a few times myself. Honestly…… it's much easier once you just give up.
—This is the first time I've ever felt pity for a human. Even a vampire would weep at this level of cruelty.
Though their thoughts differed slightly, they all shared one common realization.
If there was a living devil in this world, he was standing right before their eyes.
"Hot and fresh grilled eel~ Delicious grilled eel~ On Sundays, the Sword Saint is the chef~"
While Cheon Yu-seong was busy hunting, Jinhyuk sat by the warm campfire.
And with the most peaceful expression in the world, he warmed himself up.
* * *
As usual, a war to capture people's attention was raging on the Tower of Trials community.
[World's First Clear Video of the 5th Floor 'Clockwork Labyrinth'.]
[Tower History Lecture with the Breming Guild's Handsome Ranker]
[#Rank1 #OlympusGuild #WorldTop7Guilds #Purple-grade Relic]
Sensational titles.
Provocative thumbnails.
Risky related search terms.
They pushed the boundaries to the limit, desperate to rack up views.
It was only natural.
In a market with overwhelming supply, sensationalism was essential for survival.
And Baek Jin-ho, one of the key members of the Dangun Guild, had also prepared a trump card video to stand out in this fierce competition.
Specifically, a video of their battle against a hidden named monster on the 7th floor.
The Ice Drake raid had been brutally intense, but the Dangun Guild's 1st Raid Team had successfully taken it down.
Once they consumed the Drake's Heart, they would be able to drastically increase their resistance to the cold attribute.
"We will be the first to clear the 7th floor. We can finally wash away the disgrace of being the uncrowned kings."
The corners of Baek Jin-ho's mouth curled upward.
His heart pounded with anticipation and excitement.
"You all worked so hard."
"Haha. It was a near-death experience, but I'm glad we made it out safely."
"We only succeeded because it was us. Any other guild would've been wiped out before even getting close to the Drake."
"Of course. 99% of people probably didn't even know this place existed in the first place."
The other raid members clapped, praising each other's hard work.
"How's the reaction?"
Baek Jin-ho asked cautiously.
In response, a man sitting in front of multiple floating screens chuckled.
"Hyung, you worry too much. When are you going to lose that paranoia of yours?"
"Stop nagging and just tell me. Is it good or bad?"
"No need to ask twice. It's absolutely blowing up."
The combination of the Dangun Guild and a hidden monster was a recipe for success.
Even without clickbait, it was bound to shoot straight to the top of the rankings.
Indeed, the community's reaction was beyond hot—it was explosive.
—Yasuo+Yone: Whoa. There was a place like that on the 7th floor?
—Turned Out to Be Thanos: First time seeing this too. Must be a hidden route. As expected of Dangun.
—Line9985: Look at their coordination. Moving like a machine with hundreds of players is just mind-blowing.
—Mochi Welsh Corgi: Agreed, seriously. There's a reason they have so many subscribers.
It was a massive hit.
There was no other way to describe it.
The comments were flooding in so fast—dozens every ten seconds—that it was hard to keep up with them.
"……Good."
Only after seeing those stellar metrics did Baek Jin-ho finally relax his stiff expression.
With numbers like these, there was no way it wouldn't be a massive success.
"By the way, are we still unable to contact Jang Eun-seok?"
"We lost contact a few hours ago. He's probably in a cave or a coniferous forest. Or maybe a blizzard hit. You know how many dead zones there are on the 7th floor, hyung."
"Hmm……."
"Come on, don't worry too much. He's not the type to get taken down easily."
"True, that's true."
Baek Jin-ho nodded in agreement.
But right then.
Tring!
A new video was uploaded to the Tower of Trials community.
['Hall of Fame' has been updated with a new video.]
Everyone's pupils shook.
They couldn't help it.
It wasn't just any update—it was a video uploaded to the Hall of Fame.
"Hyung!"
"I know! I'm looking at it too!"
The number one spot had been snatched away in an instant.
They could practically feel the viewers migrating like crazy toward the new prey.
"Damn it! Who! Who the hell rained on our parade at a time like this?!"
Baek Jin-ho screamed in a frenzy.
But.
The moment he saw the status window that followed.
"Ah……."
[The owner of this video is the Korean player, Kang Jinhyuk.]
Baek Jin-ho could only watch as his entire world crumbled.