The Provocation
The academy was built around the second arena.
Rollin came to a stop in the well-maintained parking lot.
Yun Cho-a stepped out of the driver’s seat and quickly opened the door. Lee Shin emerged with his usual graceful poise.
“Yes, yes, Grandfather. The flashy design really grew on me. It’s exactly my style. Heh, right. If you’re going to spend money, you might as well spend it properly. Half-measures are worse than doing nothing at all.”
――――!!
Lee Shin walked while holding the phone to his ear. A strategic planning staff member who had appeared at some point draped a coat over his shoulders.
“The contest promotional video? Don’t worry. We’ve already brought in not only our own broadcast team but also an external video crew. You know, the team that did last season’s opening—the one you praised for being so sharp when they received the trophy.”
――――!!
People nearby couldn’t take their eyes off him. Was it because of his dazzling appearance, or the black-hole-like presence he exuded? It felt as though the world itself revolved around him.
Even while on the call, Lee Shin casually waved at the mesmerized onlookers.
“You know it well. We’re planning to put on a proper show. It’d be far too boring otherwise. Haha, exactly. Competition is precious. That’s why I gave you that information, Grandfather. When are you meeting the other chairmen…? Huh?”
――――!!
As he crossed the parking lot, Lee Shin spotted a gentleman signing autographs at the academy entrance.
Kim Jong-phil—possessing the largest fanbase in Mir regardless of age or gender. Even now, mothers who had come with their children were sparkling like teenage fans.
Kim Jong-phil noticed Lee Shin and waved him over. Lee Shin wrapped up his call.
“Grandfather, I’ll call you later. Yes, yes, I understand. I’ll send both the full and edited versions. Enjoy your lunch.”
The call ended. Lee Shin and Kim Jong-phil faced each other.
The surrounding screams and excited shrieks were set aside for now. Kim Jong-phil clearly had something he wanted to say.
“Were you waiting for me?”
“Aye, I was waiting for you.”
“Oh? Why would our elder be waiting for me? I’m curious. Shall we walk first?”
At Lee Shin’s signal, Yun Cho-a withdrew with two strategic planning staff members, clearing the area.
The two men walked slowly, continuing their conversation.
“What are you curious about?”
“Why are you stirring up trouble like this all of a sudden?”
“Stirring up trouble… Interesting phrasing. You roughly know the situation, don’t you?”
“I heard. The Bureau found our fans’ attention burdensome and asked you to divert some of it.”
“You heard everything.”
“That’s why I don’t understand. Why go through all this roundabout trouble when there’s an easy way?”
Kim Jong-phil was the only person who truly understood Lee Shin’s potential.
Overwhelming charisma. An undeniable presence. Lee Shin was the kind of man for whom standing above others came naturally.
That was exactly why this didn’t make sense.
“You don’t need this kind of show. Just appearing on screen would make the fans go wild. Interest would naturally shift. Yet you went through all this hassle.”
“Hmm, maybe I got tired of broadcasting?”
“Hah, you? An attention-seeker like you got tired of being on air?”
“Pooing pooing?”
“Hah, forget it. Even if you were tired, the Lee Shin I know isn’t the type to do pointless things.”
Lee Shin appeared lighthearted on the surface, but he was a terrifying man whose depths were fully packed. If he was doing something without substance, it meant he was hiding something.
And Kim Jong-phil was right.
“Heheh, as expected, our elder knows me too well.”
Kim Jong-phil wasn’t wrong.
If Lee Shin wanted, there were far easier and faster methods. If he had simply appeared on broadcast and done some ridiculous victory dance, the Yongbungs would have given him a standing ovation in awe.
But this time, he didn’t.
Why?
Because he had thought of a better way—for the fans, the guild, and the league alike!
“Elder, what do you think will happen if the league starts like this?”
“The league, all of a sudden?”
“Too abstract? Let me be more specific. If the league starts as is, will there be any guild that can stop us?”
“……”
Mir Guild had won every single round last season. There had been occasional setbacks, but aside from the finals against Kirin with the Divine Archer, there had never been a truly critical moment.
And the current Mir Guild was far stronger than back then.
Kim Jong-phil found himself at a loss for words.
Lee Shin smiled as if he had expected this reaction.
“Originally, I would have done as you said. I would’ve just been honest. There were circumstances. I’ll explain later, so please hold off on the attention for now~ That’s my style.”
“But now you’ve found a better method. One that benefits the fans, the guilds, and the league.”
“Heh, I already had a plan. It’s just been moved forward. Just between us, I saw some interesting information at the Bureau. The moment I saw it, I thought—Ah! This is an opportunity! This year might actually be fun!”
And today was the first step toward that fun.
“From now on, I’ll show you.”
Lee Shin grabbed the doorknob, winked, and opened the broadcast room door.
“Broadcast team leader, are we ready?”
“Everything’s finished!”
“Great. Then let’s get started.”
Lee Shin and Kim Jong-phil stood side by side in front of the main screen.
Lee Shin looked at the screen, brought his mouth to the microphone, and spoke.
“Kids, let’s begin.”
And at that moment—
Park Su-bin and Baek Yeon-woo on screen began walking toward each other.
* * *
A vast grassland field.
Two men closed the distance, stepping on grass swaying in the wind.
“It’s been a while since we faced each other like this, hasn’t it?”
Park Su-bin spoke as he stepped forward. The newly acquired black mink coat draped over his shoulders swayed leisurely with each step.
“Yeah. First time since waking up that scrap heap?”
Baek Yeon-woo, clad in a pristine white uniform, loosened his neck, shoulders, and wrists in turn.
The white scabbard at his side radiated a fierce aura, matching his provocative smile.
“Heheh, Gant said you’re an arrogant bastard. He said if you call him scrap metal one more time, he’ll crush you.”
One step.
A halo blazed behind Park Su-bin.
“I always think this—your scrap metal talks way too much. A weapon’s ego shouldn’t be this strong if it’s meant to carry your will.”
One step.
A brilliant white light erupted from Baek Yeon-woo’s scabbard.
“Huh? What did you say, Gant? Weapon favoritism?”
Another step.
Through the halo, the upper body of the mechanical giant, Gigant, emerged.
“Hey, that’s your real thought, isn’t it?”
When the Sword of Light, Cheon-bong, was released from its scabbard and radiated brilliance—
Black and white.
Machine and radiance.
“Let’s fight properly.”
“You’re dead.”
Park Su-bin and Baek Yeon-woo finally clashed.
Black and white mana exploded outward from them!
――――!!
The grassland was overturned by the colliding mana currents.
Amidst the rising clouds of dirt, Park Su-bin took the initiative.
The mechanical giant, Gigant, brought its fist down.
Whether it had taken the “arrogant” comment to heart, Gigant roared as it ramped up its engine output.
Then it mercilessly slammed its fist toward Baek Yeon-woo, who had dared to call it scrap metal.
Quarr— Boom! Boom—!……
The ground exploded as if struck by artillery. The surroundings trembled as though an earthquake had struck.
Steel, machinery, and raw mass unleashed violent power.
That was Park Su-bin’s awakened mechanical giant, Gigant.
But at some point, Gigant’s fists began to be blocked.
Shwaaa— Clang!
What blocked the fist was light. Cheon-bong, transformed into a massive double-bladed axe.
Raw power from mass? This side had limitless transformation.
Baek Yeon-woo grinned like a beast through the dispersing dust.
In that instant, the axe-shaped Cheon-bong split into dozens of spears that climbed up the mechanical arm.
Immediately after, the spearheads embedded themselves into the machine’s joints.
Crack! Zap! Thud, drdrdr—.
Light burst from every gap in the machinery—between gears, along wires, through connecting pipes.
The light grew brighter, blindingly so, until finally—
Kwaaaaaaaaang—!
It exploded!
Kwadeuk!!
Mechanical parts flew into the air as the arm disassembled.
And through the wreckage, Baek Yeon-woo charged like a streak of light.
Speed reminiscent of the ultimate light sword!
He instantly closed the distance and raised Cheon-bong, now transformed into a greatsword, high in the air.
In that split second, Baek Yeon-woo’s eyes widened in shock.
Because Park Su-bin, looking up at him, was smiling.
“It’s a trap.”
Clap!
Park Su-bin clapped his hands.
With a strange ringing sound, gates opened on both sides of the space where Baek Yeon-woo floated.
Wires poured out from the gates.
The scattered wreckage reassembled into a new mechanical arm.
Then, just like Park Su-bin moments ago, the mechanical arm clapped—crushing Baek Yeon-woo beneath it!
Kwoong——
A shockwave erupted from the point of impact, so intense that the parts in the palm trembled.
The surrounding area was devastated by the tidal wave of force.
At that moment, a light rose.
Through the dispersing mana currents, Baek Yeon-woo soared into the sky, six wings of light flapping behind him.
“You used to do it with a lion’s roar, now you’re doing it with a clap. You crazy bastard… Why did you hide the disassembly and reassembly? That’s dirty.”
“You hid the wing form too. Anyway, your reaction speed is insane. Did your weapon escape on its own just now?”
The moment the mechanical hand clapped, Cheon-bong had autonomously transformed into wings and pulled Baek Yeon-woo upward.
A weapon that protects its user of its own will… Can that even be called a weapon anymore? Park Su-bin laughed in disbelief.
“Hey, at this point it’s basically magic. How come you, Yeonu, feel more like a mage than me?”
“All paths converge at the peak. That’s what the Heavenly Demon of China said.”
“I know one too—sufficiently advanced machinery is indistinguishable from magic!”
“Isn’t it science?”
“Does it matter?”
“Keke.”
“Heheh.”
Dragon and tiger clashing.
Evenly matched.
With just a single exchange, they dominated their surroundings. The sky trembled, and the earth quaked.
This was Park Su-bin and Baek Yeon-woo.
The final weapon Lee Shin had chosen, and the monstrous genius who had even made Lee Shin click his tongue.
The title “Children of God” suited them perfectly.
“I’m raising the output. Brace yourself.”
“You too.”
The entire area shook.
Machines gathered around Park Su-bin.
Swathes of light gathered around Baek Yeon-woo.
Finally, steel and light collided.
This was a battle that would redefine the standards of talent.
* * *
At that same moment, those watching the battle from the control room all wore stunned expressions.
Dropped jaws were the norm. Some even had drool running down their chins.
“……”
“……”
“……”
What… What were they watching?
Words failed them.
Admiration required understanding first. They didn’t even have the courage to evaluate it. The battle between the two geniuses had already far exceeded the limits of perception.
A mechanical giant that destroyed the world through disassembly and reassembly.
A sword of radiance that dominated space through expansion and transformation.
Park Su-bin, who proved that perfect defense was itself an attack.
Baek Yeon-woo, who embodied the saying that the best defense is a good offense.
The boundaries of recognition collapsed. The field itself changed with every clash.
Breaking, shattering, splitting, overturning, being pushed back, trembling, fragmenting, vanishing…
This series of events wasn’t mystery or wonder.
Yes—this was awe.
That tremendous power inspired respect, yet instinctively instilled fear.
The broadcast team leader suppressed the goosebumps rising across his body and moved his trembling jaw.
“Representative…”
“Yes. Go ahead.”
“A-are you really going to release this? I mean, is it even okay to release this?”
The veteran broadcaster’s instincts were sounding alarms.
This wasn’t just a promotional video for a contest. It was a tactical weapon capable of overturning an entire nation. Perhaps even the world order would break.
No—it would break! Without a doubt!!
“……If we release this publicly on YouTube for anyone to see, the aftermath will be beyond imagination.”
“You think so too, Team Leader?”
“Not just me. Anyone with working eyes would think the same.”
“Hah, perfect. If even ordinary people feel this way, the hunters will feel it even more, right?”
“……!!”
The broadcast team leader gasped in realization. Meanwhile, Lee Shin turned to Kim Jong-phil on the opposite side.
Kim Jong-phil’s eyes were complicated, filled with many thoughts.
“Are they going to do something similar with Lira too?”
“Of course. Yu Shin is waiting somewhere on the field right now. The rankings aren’t even decided yet, so we need to appeal our charm, don’t we?”
“You scheming bastard… From the very beginning, shifting public opinion wasn’t the goal.”
“Hehehe. You saw through it? That’s why I like you, Elder.”
That was right.
Though Director Kim Mi-young had complained, shifting public opinion had never been Lee Shin’s concern.
Lee Shin’s interests had always been the guild and this league. More precisely, the guilds that would challenge them and the league that would compete fiercely against them.
“It wouldn’t be fun if they didn’t chase after us.”
“Hah, so that’s what it was. This video wasn’t made to show the fans—it was made to show the hunters participating in the league.”
“A provocation. A good start to the Stove League, wouldn’t you say?”
“Hah, provocation? If they get provoked twice, the kids will die with their noses buried in the ground.”
This wasn’t mere provocation. It was outright intimidation.
We are the best, and we’ve still grown this much. If you come at us the same as last season without any changes, then this is what will happen.
Just like the earth being crushed beneath Park Su-bin’s mechanical giant, just like the landscape being erased by Baek Yeon-woo.
We will completely destroy you.
And at that moment, Kim Jong-phil’s mind raced furiously.
“Come to think of it, you personally trained the rankers who participated in the expedition. You poured everything into raising the kids to a suspicious degree.”
“Hah!”
“And now you’re using the contest as an excuse to threaten them. If they don’t reinforce their forces, you’ll destroy them?”
“Heheheh!”
“You scheming bastard. Don’t tell me you…”
And the conclusion he reached was—
“You want the other guilds to form super teams.”
“It’s been a while since I played the mastermind, hasn’t it?”
The fans would be excited, the league would become healthier, and the guilds would open their wallets. What could be better?
So—
Struggle all you want, humans!!
“Puahahahahahaha——!!”