Chapter 84
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 84
Chapter Title: Heo Tae-seok
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Heo Tae-seok was in despair.
He was bullied for being gloomy and became everyone's laughingstock for looking weak.
They said the culture of bullying was gone, but ostracism still existed.
They said there were no delinquents these days, but gophers still existed.
At first, he was shocked and bewildered.
That something he'd only seen on TV was happening to him.
‘Did… did I do something wrong to them?’
He thought the fault was his and tried to fix it.
But it didn't take long for him to realize the truth.
‘Ah… these guys are just bullying me because I’m an easy target.’
He believed the bullying would end someday.
‘Just hold on until graduation. Just until I graduate high school.’
With that single-minded determination, he endured the delinquents' torment.
But he had overestimated himself.
He wasn't as strong as he thought.
"You son of a bitch, are my words a joke to you? I told you to pay up every single day, didn't I?"
"S-Sorry. I-I live with my g-grandma, so I don't have any m-money…"
"What the hell, this bastard. Turns out he doesn't even have a mom or dad?"
"Ah, so his grandma must be his mom, then?"
"Damn, his mom is old as fuck, hahaha."
"…"
"Still, you gotta bring the money, you fucking bastard. Whether you have to steal it or whatever."
"Yeah, you punk. We don't have money for cigarettes because of you. Want us to bury you with your grandma when she kicks the bucket?"
"…"
When the delinquents mocked his grandmother, Heo Tae-seok felt what it was like to snap.
"You… you sons of bitches!!!"
For the first time, he stood up to them.
Of course, the result was disastrous.
"This crazy bastard wants to die."
"Hey, hold still. I'm gonna give you a cigarette burn right on your forehead."
*Tssssss—*
"Aaaaargh!"
After that, the bullying only intensified.
He was dragged around day after day, subjected to assault, threats, extortion, and torture.
The torment that followed was so beyond imagination that it felt like even demons would take notes from these bastards.
After school became his hell.
‘I want to die… It seems easier.’
He had felt enough pain that he wasn't afraid of dying.
In fact, suicide seemed like the only way out.
But Heo Tae-seok couldn't bring himself to do it.
‘If I go… what will happen to my grandma?’
It would be a betrayal to the grandmother who had raised him with such love and care, collecting scrap paper to get by.
‘I have to endure. I promised I'd get my diploma, make money, and give her a comfortable life.’
To keep the promise he made to himself, Heo Tae-seok held on.
He endured and endured, with the sole intention of being a good son to his grandmother.
As a result, for the first time, Heo Tae-seok was proud of himself.
Because he had survived three years of high school bullying without dying.
‘Finally, graduation. Once the break is over…’
But in the year 2022.
With the arrival of the angel, the Great Cataclysm occurred.
He now had to participate in a life-or-death survival game every month.
To make matters worse, his grandmother's health deteriorated.
Then, around the time the second round ended.
"G-Grandma…?"
Heo Tae-seok's world crumbled.
His grandmother's death changed Heo Tae-seok's life.
"Hehe, hey, see? I told you he'd lose it if we messed with his grandma."
"You're right. Heo Tae-seok, you fucking piece of shit, are you pissed? I told you, didn't I? That I'd bury you and your grandma together."
"You should've known your place, you worthless piece of… Guuuh!"
He plunged a dagger into the throat of the delinquent in front of him and immediately used a skill.
A black arrow lodged itself in the eye of the one next to him.
"Ugh, fuck! W-What is this bastard? Was he a class holder?!"
The delinquents had no idea.
That Heo Tae-seok had already acquired the Warlock class.
The delinquents were mistaken.
They thought a loser in real life would be a loser in the other world, too.
The delinquents had overlooked one thing.
They thought they could beat anyone as long as they had the numbers.
"Hah. Hah. Hah."
When he came to his senses, the room was filled with bloody corpses.
His grandmother's house was stained with their blood.
"Grand… ma…"
It must have been from that moment.
That Heo Tae-seok's speech became stuttered.
That he built walls between himself and others.
And.
That he set a new goal.
‘They said if I pass the final round, any wish will be granted, right?’
Heo Tae-seok's wish was simple.
To bring his grandmother back to life and live happily with her forever.
He didn't want to see the parents who had abandoned him.
He only needed his grandmother by his side.
From then on, Heo Tae-seok took the trials seriously.
He was skilled enough, and the Warlock class was more powerful than he'd expected.
‘The Black Arrow rapidly corrupts the wounded area. In that case, I don't need to aim for the head.’
A mere scratch would cause the flesh to decay and rot within seconds, so as long as he landed a hit and bought some time, the fight would turn in his favor.
He had invested in agility to take advantage of this.
After hitting a target with a Black Arrow, he could just run around and stall for time until victory was his.
‘I might be able to handle multiple opponents with this.’
As expected, his strategy of hitting monsters with arrows and then fleeing proved effective for taking down large groups.
His confidence grew.
He thought he could power-level, and from then on, he never lost the number one spot in his area.
But there was always someone better.
‘Black Scythe? How can that person get so strong so quickly?’
Seeing that name, which never failed to top the all-area rankings during every tally, his curiosity was piqued.
His admiration for the strong grew.
‘I want to meet him. To see just how strong he is.’
He only thought about it, but when the areas merged, he got to see it for himself.
Just how powerful the player named Black Scythe was.
‘Wow… nine people in an instant…’
Watching the representative selection match, Heo Tae-seok was mesmerized by his artful skill.
He was just too strong.
‘If only I had been that strong… I wouldn't have been pushed around by those delinquents…’
If he had been, his grandmother might still be alive today.
Regret washed over him.
Regret for the days he had lived as a weakling.
‘I want to be strong like Black Scythe.’
The desire to be strong sparked a deep admiration for Black Scythe.
‘Should I try talking to him? No… who am I to…’
Compared to him, Black Scythe was practically a god.
He had to be content with just being in the same area as such a being.
And yet.
‘M-Me, in a party with Black Scythe?’
He had never imagined he would end up in a party with him.
Just being in the same place as the person he admired so much felt like a dream.
"NoPainNoGay."
"Yes?"
"Now that we're a party, introduce yourselves to each other."
"Ah…"
At Black Scythe's command, Heo Tae-seok hesitated for a moment before speaking.
"I-I'm NoPainNoGay. I'm a Level 23 Warlock. My skills are Black Arrow and Black Chain…"
He stuttered at first, but after that, the words flowed smoothly.
"Nice to meet you, NoPain. I'm a Level 21 Buffer. Let's work well together!"
"Hello, I'm Seo Ah-rin. I'm a Level 20 Summoner, and my skills are…"
The party members took turns introducing themselves, but their words didn't register in Heo Tae-seok's ears.
‘What's happening? I'm not stuttering like I used to.’
Was it because of the shock of losing his grandmother?
He always used to stutter in front of people, but for some reason, his nervousness had subsided.
‘Could it be because of Black Scythe?’
Did being in front of Black Scythe give him confidence he never had?
Or was his subconscious desire to impress him coming to the surface?
He didn't know why, but one thing was certain.
‘I'm glad I partied up with Black Scythe.’
As Heo Tae-seok smiled secretly to himself, Ryu Min spoke.
"Alright, since the introductions are over, let's go hunt."
"Just a moment. I'll cast my buffs first."
Min Ju-ri went around casting buffs on each member of the party.
Bless and Swift.
Everyone who received the buffs couldn't help but be astonished.
"Wh-What is this? My stats went up by 60%?"
"My attack speed and movement speed are also 60% faster."
"Is… is this a bug?"
The players who had never experienced her buffs gawked in amazement, but Ryu Min remained calm.
"So this is why you always travel with Democracy, Black Scythe? Buffer-nim, you're amazing!"
"Haha, you're making me blush."
Min Ju-ri laughed awkwardly as Ahn Sang-chul praised her.
"…"
Feeling a pang of jealousy, Seo Ah-rin spoke up, not wanting to be outdone.
"I can cast buffs with my summons, too."
As she cast her skill, two fairies that looked like gnats appeared, scattering golden dust.
Then, *shhhh-*, dirt gathered and formed a human-sized golem.
"Wow, what are those cute fairies?"
"They're called Fairies, summons that cast a protective shield. They didn't have any combat abilities originally, but once I hit level 20, I got two of them, and they started using attack magic."
"Woooow, then what about that summon made of stone?"
"That's a Golem I learned at level 20. It doesn't have any buffs, but it's good at drawing monster aggro, so I summoned it in advance."
"Wow… A tanker and a supporter. You're so cool, unni."
Min Ju-ri gushed with admiration, but Seo Ah-rin's eyes were fixed on Black Scythe.
‘How about that, Black Scythe? I'm pretty useful too, right?’
She sent him a look seeking acknowledgment, but Ryu Min seemed uninterested, looking elsewhere.
"Let's get going now."
Ryu Min took the lead, and everyone nodded and followed.
‘A buffer, a summoner… everyone's so amazing. I hope I can be helpful too.’
Heo Tae-seok followed behind, his face tense.
Then, he felt a flicker of doubt at their rather leisurely pace.
‘Why is the atmosphere so relaxed?’
Of course, with a six-hour time limit, they had plenty of time.
They only needed to kill one of the 101 bosses on the field to pass, so it was natural to be relaxed.
‘But don't we have to kill a boss quickly to be ranked first? Why isn't anyone in a hurry to find one?’
He was filled with doubt, but having not heard the prophecy, Heo Tae-seok had no way of knowing.
The fact that there was no benefit to killing a boss quickly.
Just then, a shout came from somewhere.
"There's a boss over there!"
Turning toward the sound, he saw a large monster.
It was 3.5 meters tall, a half-man, half-horse creature.
A centaur.
"We have to get first place!"
"Let's get it now!"
One party, showing no fear, rushed toward the centaur.
"Krawwwr!"
The centaur swung a giant double-bladed axe, and the players struggled against its resistance.
"Ugh, this thing's strength is no joke!"
"S-Spread out and attack!"
"Let's surround it!"
The five players surrounded the centaur.
"Aim for its back! The back!"
At someone's shout, a player mindlessly approached from behind, and Ryu Min, who was watching, clicked his tongue.
‘Aiming for a horse's rear. How foolish.’
Sure enough.
*CRACK—!*
The player behind it was sent flying 10 meters by a back-kick, hit the ground, and rolled another 3 meters.
"P-Pink Princess-nim!"
The twitching figure was thankfully not dead.
But it seemed they were out of the fight.
"You bastard!"
"We'll get r-revenge!"
The remaining players used their skills and launched a coordinated attack.
"Kuaaargh!"
The centaur collapsed after its legs were slashed, and swords immediately plunged into its neck.
*Stab, stab, stab—*
When the centaur finally let its tongue loll out and died, they let out a victorious cheer.
"We… we won!"
"We're number one!"
"We finally cleared the quest in first place!"
"That was easier than I thought."
Seeing the other team rejoice, Heo Tae-seok felt a pang of disappointment.
‘Damn, they took first place from us.’
Heo Tae-seok's gaze naturally shifted to Black Scythe.
He had always maintained the number one rank, so he must be more disappointed than anyone.
‘Huh?’
But Ryu Min's expression was utterly unfazed.
A face without a single trace of disappointment.
As he wondered about this, the other team's cheers eventually died down.
"Wh-What is it?"
"Why isn't the quest completion notice popping up?"
"Ah… no way?"
Seeing the players' belated looks of dismay, Ryu Min let out a smirk.
‘Looks like they finally realized. What they killed wasn't a boss.’
Unfortunately for them, the centaur was not a boss.
‘They said they released 101 bosses, not that there were no regular mobs.’
This was why Ryu Min had been watching so leisurely.
Because the centaur was just a regular mob.