The Legend Is in Progress

We’ve come this ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠far.

Chae Dong-ha gazed into the distance, his eyes brimming with deep emotion.

The space was utterly dominated by brilliant bursts of magical light, heart-pounding tension, and roars so thunderous they bordered on majestic. Yet for some reason, Chae Dong-ha’s heart wasn’t soaring with excitement. Instead, an eerie calm had settled over him, the kind that raised goosebumps across his skin.

There have been quite a few events along the way.

His mind rewound like a clock spinning backward, all the way to the day he first became entangled with the Rothschilds.

I still don’t fully understand. Just how did things end up flowing in that direction?

One man was desperate to hand over a bundle of cash, while the other kept dragging people on dates, declaring he would dance. The pair somehow fell into perfect sync, wandering Yeongdo for days on end. Then one afternoon Lee Shin suddenly shoved a contract across the table.

A contract covered in endless zeros. Chae Dong-ha still couldn’t forget that day. It was the first time in a long while he had felt genuinely nauseous.

Suddenly I’m getting angry all over again. Why would you present such an important contract at the dinner table of all places? And then what did you say? “I picked it up on the way”? Do you have a brain in that head or not!

Even for Chae Dong-ha, who believed he had accumulated a respectable career, the scale was enough to shatter his mind to pieces. In today’s terms, it was a contract with national-level power.

And it wasn’t a joke. It was real.

But that wasn’t the only interesting part.

The subject of the contract was the representative himself.

Instead of signing the document Evelyn Rothschild offered, Lee Shin had somehow succeeded in making her sign the contract he presented. In contracts, the numbers mattered, but so did the positions of Party A and Party B. Beyond that, whose hand had drafted the document was crucial, because the initiative shifted depending on who held the reins.

In that sense, Lee Shin had performed some kind of sorcery and stolen the initiative from Evelyn.

After that, everything unfolded exactly as we know.

The Rothschild Shock.

The phrase described how the Korean market trembled under the weight of the Rothschild family’s capital. No other term explained the situation more simply. The entire nation shook, and every economic indicator shot straight upward.

The happiness index of Busan citizens, in particular, blasted straight into outer space.

Massive investments circulated money through the city. The economy improved so much people could feel it in their daily lives. On top of that, the chronic unemployment problem was solved cleanly.

The citizens of Busan had no choice but to worship.

The Mountain King was a god, and Lee Shin was invincible.

It’s amusing. We’ve only just begun, yet it’s already like this. I wonder what will happen later.

Around the time the guild was still reverberating from the Rothschild Shock, the Korean national team—having achieved total victory in the preliminaries—returned home. Despite some leakage in their power, the proud Taeguk Warriors had displayed performance beyond all expectations, and the public sent them fervent cheers.

Guardian Yeo Eun-seo, who had led the star-studded squad well as team captain. Chang-gwi Yang Kang-cheol, who always charged forward. Park Gwang-seob, who proved exactly why he was called the Sword Master. Director Hong Han-hyun, who had evolved into the “Great Emperor Triple H.”

And finally, the ones who had graduated from Lee Shin’s children into the true Children of God: Park Su-bin, Baek Yeon-woo, and Yu Ri-ra.

I could only sigh in admiration, honestly. When the representative kept chanting “international experience, international experience,” I just nodded along, but… they really did absorb the strengths of other rankers.

In fact, one of the conditions Lee Shin had presented when approving Director Hong Han-hyun’s selection was the right to decide the pairing partners.

To Yu Ri-ra, who had already reached the pinnacle of lightning-fast solo play, he gave Guardian Yeo Eun-seo’s judgment.

To Park Su-bin, who was awakening his tactical mind and growing into the team’s core, he gave Chang-gwi Yang Kang-cheol’s decisiveness.

And to Baek Yeon-woo, who drove himself with merciless intensity, he gave Sword Master Park Gwang-seob’s harmony.

Just as Lee Shin had calculated, the children absorbed the veterans’ strengths in only three matches…

And their potential exploded.

In the matchup against Taeyang Guild, who sat in fourth place, Park Su-bin showed a completely different side. He began exerting influence across the map instead of simply defending the mid lane.

The bold tower dives in particular were something no one had ever seen from the previously ultra-stable Su-bin.

Succeed and dive. Fail and crash.

Displaying such decisiveness…

Park Su-bin completely crushed Taeyang Guild.

Right on cue, a voice rang out.

“Yuhuhuhut!!”

Chae Dong-ha did his best to ignore it.

What came next?

The matchup against Shinseong Guild. The insane schedule of facing third place right after fourth had the Yongbungs hammering the Bureau’s doors. In that match, Yu Ri-ra displayed her growth without the slightest reservation.

She secured her survivability while perfectly reading the timing to strike. So that’s why the representative gave her judgment.

There was no game in which she was consistently disadvantaged.

It didn’t matter whether the opportunity came from the opponent’s mistake or the natural flow of battle. As long as the enemy was human, a gap would appear.

For Yu Ri-ra, whose greatest strength was speed, exploiting that gap was effortless. All she needed was the judgment to find it, and she could descend like lightning.

The result:

Yu Ri-ra averaged ten kills per set and utterly demolished Shinseong Guild’s Cross.

“Ihihihit!”

“……”

Ahem…

And then last week’s match.

The clash against Baekgeom Guild, who had crawled their way up from the edge of the cliff all the way to fifth in the league.

That match drew attention for an entirely different reason.

It was the savage head-to-head duel between Baek Yeon-woo and Sword Master Park Gwang-seob, the pair who had shown miraculous chemistry on the national team.

They really fought like it was life or death.

Matchups were team games. Five-versus-five on a canyon battlefield where ten people fought. It was difficult for individual power alone to decide the outcome.

But on that day, individuals eclipsed the team. Baek Yeon-woo and Park Gwang-seob swung their blades at each other with insane ferocity, reducing their teammates to mere supporting cast. By the end, both Mir Guild and Baekgeom Guild were practically just setting the stage for the two of them.

Of course, the final score was still:

The power gap made the score overwhelming, but at least those two refused to follow the script. The sight of them laughing brightly while aiming for each other’s hearts had been enough to captivate every single person watching.

Even now, just remembering that moment made Chae Dong-ha’s chest tingle.

“Yeeet!!”

“…Damn it! I’m trying to feel moved over here!”

“Moved? Moooved?! Being moved is goooood!”

Lee Shin, who had frozen mid-dance on the podium, let out an excited cry and immediately resumed shaking his body.

“The kids have grown so much, yet the representative remains creepily unchanged.”

“If you’re happy, you dance! If a person changes, they diiiie!”

“Then I’ll be the one who dies.”

“What’s the fun if everyone changes? It’s fine to have one like thaaat!”

Chop chop!

Chae Dong-ha burst into laughter at the sight of Lee Shin bouncing on the balls of his feet. He wasn’t wrong. It was fine to have one, and if it had to be anyone, it was better that it was Lee Shin. Because that made everyone happy.

Smiling, Chae Dong-ha turned back to the screen.

Above the fiercely clashing hunters floated the current score.

They had come this far.

The end of the regular season was now right before their eyes.

Park Su-bin charged forward instead, straight into the spear flying toward him like a bolt of light.

Against a weapon with long reach, yielding distance was foolish. And if that spear belonged to Chang-gwi, challenging a ranged battle was outright suicide.

Therefore—

Close combat it is!

The instant Park Su-bin’s eyes flashed, a milky-white giant rose alongside the fluttering black mink coat. The giant, empowered by the Karakum set, thrust its massive fist forward.

The giant’s fist collided with Chang-gwi’s spear.

Kwaaaaaang——!!

Thrust. Thrust. Thrust.

The spear moved faster than bullets. The giant stood in its path.

Shockwaves spread in concentric circles, devouring everything around them. Inside the dust cloud, Park Su-bin and Yang Kang-cheol continued their relentless exchange.

“Hahaha. Haha!!”

“Hoo!!”

“You learned properly, young man!!”

“Th-thank y—!!”

At that exact moment, white sword energy burst through ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the dust and spread in every direction.

In the blink of an eye, Park Su-bin was trapped inside a cage of sword energy. Dodging was impossible. Creating an orb to block it was not an option.

Because that was the Myriad King’s sword energy, and the blade currently in the Myriad King’s hand was the mana-severing Baekhwageom—already proven to be Park Su-bin’s counter.

The white sword energy that had occupied the area like a net suddenly reversed direction all at once.

Shwaaaaaak——

It slashed downward toward Park Su-bin.

And as if it had been waiting for that very moment, a silver radiance pierced down from the sky.

If the Baekhwageom severed mana, then anything without mana would do just fine.

Silver shields covered three sides. The divine Pridwen had blocked the Baekhwageom.

The Myriad King and Gumiho seized the initiative.

The Myriad King shattered his accessories, filling the sky with magic circles. Gumiho spread flames from nine tails, engulfing the area in hallucinations. Behind them, Flame Queen Kim Ji-ah—layered thickly with Tinkerbell’s buffs—flew forward. Multi-stage explosions erupted wherever her flickering, flame-filled eyes turned.

This was Kirin Guild’s true strength.

Perfect positioning and formation.

Even with the Mountain King’s departure exposing weaknesses in operation and strategy, the sheer weight class of Kirin Guild’s star corps had not died. They had never lost an organized team fight, which was exactly how they had ruled the Korean league for years.

But the reverse was also true: if they collapsed even in a straight 5-vs-5 power struggle, Kirin Guild’s final pride would shatter.

As the dust cleared, Mir Guild appeared.

The Mountain King and Baek Yeon-woo stood at the front. Hwarang supported from behind. At the very rear, Yu Ri-ra’s sniper rifle was already locked onto the enemy formation.

Good. Five-versus-five. Power against power.

Let’s see who wins.

The instant Chang-gwi’s spear swung at sonic speed to create ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠an opening, Yu Ri-ra’s sniper round—aimed at that fractional gap—knocked the spear blade aside.

Baek Yeon-woo immediately brought his greatsword down with enough force to bisect Chang-gwi, but the Myriad King’s accessory shattered and a magic circle blocked the strike.

Gumiho targeted Baek Yeon-woo’s back.

Park Su-bin targeted Gumiho’s back.

Flame Queen targeted Park Su-bin.

Hwarang blocked Flame Queen, and Tinkerbell raised her magic wand toward Hwarang…

No one yielded even an inch.

Attacks chained endlessly.

Targeting became a dizzying tangle.

Shouts, collision sounds, and mana shockwaves filled the entire space.

Adrenaline surged. Breathing grew ragged. Even their mana-reinforced bodies began to creak.

The moment the string of tension reached its absolute limit—

In a battlefield where fighters split moments to trade blows, the one who ultimately wins is the one who sees the most.

And they knew such a person.

As the Mountain King’s golden laurel wreath shone—

In a world that had frozen for a single instant, the Mountain King’s gaze captured everything. The moment the miniature vita melted into the air, stumps and vegetation surged forth to envelop the battlefield.

He had calculated the infinitesimal gap where ten attacks crossed—five enemies and four allies—and created an opportunity only someone with a mind that reached the heavens could produce. An opportunity only an unparalleled commander could craft.

By the time the Kirin team members, including the Myriad King, escaped the plants using their individual abilities…

The sight before their eyes shattered their will to fight.

“Ah…”

“We’re fucked.”

It was a tree.

A World Tree that soared into the heavens.

The World Tree was glowing. Letters of light floated upward.

Then brilliant destruction rained down.