The Giant God Ascends
Geoshin, Park Su-bin.
With Mir’s holy blood youth selected as Korea’s League Rank 1, Chae Dong-ha moved swiftly into action.
“Everyone saw it, right? Release the press materials. Now!”
““Yes!!””
At his single command, the entire PR team lifted their phones in unison. Calls flew out to newspapers, broadcasters, and every direction at once. In an instant, the internet was flooded with articles about Park Su-bin.
[A seismic shift has occurred. Korea’s Rank 1: Geoshin Park Su-bin!]
[The second ‘God’ who pushed the ultimate weapon, Shingung, down to second place—is he merely a twenty-year-old youth? Geoshin Park Su-bin, who is he?]
[Did the giant become the Giant God by the Bureau’s decree?]
[The holy blood youth raised by Mir Guild writes legends and forges myths.]
·
·
With Park Su-bin claiming Rank 1, it was clear he would be the league’s protagonist for the time being. Honestly, the topic’s sheer heat meant the PR team barely needed to lift a finger. At this level of buzz, the world would devour itself without any prompting.
But Chae Dong-ha thought differently.
Precisely because the fire was burning uncontrollably, they had to step in even harder!
“Public opinion is currently focused excessively on Hunter Park Su-bin, who has become Rank 1. If this continues, it won’t be long before photos of Hunter Park Su-bin hang across not just Korea, but the entire world. That’s something to celebrate, but we must also stay vigilant.”
“We are a guild. Not some small guild starving for even a scrap of attention, but a grand, prestigious guild that has risen to Asian champions. We already have a long-term, large-scale plan in place. It is never good for too much spotlight to fall on a single hunter.”
“Therefore, from now on, we will ease off and disperse the attention.”
They would actively leverage the current topic, but gradually spread it first to Baek Yeon-woo and Yu Ri-ra nearby, then outward to the entire guild!
And fortunately, Mir Guild possessed an overpowered trump card in this regard. Chae Dong-ha’s ultimate move—Lee Shin launch!
“Make sure every article includes the two characters ‘Lee Shin’ without fail! That should disperse things nicely.”
[All the Children of God have entered single-digit ranks! Is this Lee Shin’s nurturing? Or the Mountain King’s guidance? Or both?]
[This child will grow up to become a ‘God.’ Past footage of Park Su-bin, now drawing renewed attention. ‘This is Geoshin?’ What on earth did Lee Shin see in him?]
[‘From Genius to Heavenly Emperor?’ The Bureau’s comment draws eyes toward Baek Yeon-woo.]
[Blitz Yurira says she requested English on SNS. “All Chinese characters felt a bit off, you know? Oppa told me he asked the Bureau in English. I like Blitz.”]
·
·
[Ido Group Lee Myeong public contest prize distribution.]
Public opinion shifted steadily with time.
This should be fine. Once Chae Dong-ha felt a reasonable level of certainty, he moved to the next step.
“PR Team Leader! How are the overseas reactions?”
“The New York Times has already requested an interview.”
“Sir, the Washington Post just contacted us as well.”
“Hold on. I’m on the phone with CNN right now! They’re insisting on doing one too—what should we do?”
It wasn’t for nothing that people said the world’s attention had converged on Korea. Pretending otherwise was pointless; the moment the rankings were announced, media outlets from every country rushed to publish articles.
“What’s the general flow?”
“Europe and America are overwhelmingly positive for now.”
Perhaps that was only natural.
Europe had already shown goodwill toward Mir Guild because of the Mountain King. On top of that, Europe’s invisible hand, the Rothschilds, had formed a connection with Lee Shin, so negative-toned articles were simply impossible.
America needed no explanation. This was, after all, where Lee Shin had briefly been active. Here, attention was focused even more on Lee Shin, the one who had discovered Park Su-bin, than on Park Su-bin himself. Especially the Mets fans were practically drooling at the thought of somehow bringing “that guy” back.
“Then the real story must be Asia. China and Japan. Following the usual pattern, we’d ignore Japan and criticize China, but it seems different this time?”
“Completely. Japan has put Geoshin right on the front page.”
Japan’s defeat in this Asian League had been far too devastating. When the Shinsengumi Guild, the overwhelming number-one force in the league, was utterly crushed without any real resistance, the entire Japanese archipelago fell into shock.
In short, the reason they were elevating Geoshin was precisely because of that. It wasn’t that we were weak and lost! We lost because that guy was absurdly strong! That sort of mindset.
“Classic case of propping someone up to look better.”
“It also seems related to the fact that the Shinsengumi Guild’s Ghost transferred to the Mets Guild. Who would have expected him to give up the jungler position and go to Mets?”
“Good. That’s enough about Japan. What about China?”
“Ah, China is a bit subtle as well.”
Originally, just as Chae Dong-ha had expected, it had been nothing but criticism.
They mocked the league’s level for placing a mere twenty-year-old brat at number one and even questioned the fairness of the Korean League.
But all that controversy died down with a single thunderous rebuke.
From Chang-cheon-geom-je, Namgoong Min.
Once Namgoong Min, head of the Namgoong Sega, publicly rebuked them, even for the sake of his and the Sega’s face, no one dared speak carelessly anymore.
“We received help.”
“Yes. Thanks to the Blue Sky Sword Emperor, the major public opinion seems to have been settled.”
“Understood. Then I’ll head over to see the Guild Leader.”
Chae Dong-ha smiled as he checked Namgoong Min’s article.
So the Guild Leader had been watching this. It seemed the seeds Lee Shin had carefully planted one by one were finally sprouting, and the sight filled him with quiet satisfaction.
Thus, carrying good news, Chae Dong-ha entered the Guild Leader’s office—only to find Lee Shin chuckling at his monitor, clearly amused by something.
“Kekekekeke.”
“What’s so funny?”
“Oh, you’re here, Dong-ha hyung? Did you see this? It’s hilarious.”
“What is it?”
What Lee Shin showed him on the monitor—
It was a battlefield without blood or tears.
* * *
As with any country, ranking games were always the hottest and most entertaining.
“I’m better than that guy, aren’t I?” “That team reaching that high doesn’t make sense, right?” “Are they insane?”
The true taste of competition, stirring the very roots of human nature. That was the essence of ranking games.
And now the Bureau itself was ranking representatives from each league? If that didn’t make your mouth water, something was wrong with you.
—This fact must be established as a premise.
To understand the war currently raging in Korea’s guild scene—
The Bureau always emphasized that “rankings” were not the measure of true strength. For example, the currently controversial Guisal (19th) could very well solo-kill Heukseong (11th) in the next match without it being strange at all.
But if they thought such sincerity would be accepted, they had severely underestimated this scene.
League fans didn’t care about any of that. They were simply furious that the hunter they supported had been shoved into the lower ranks and treated like washed-up goods.
And whenever someone gets angry, certain people always appear.
The instigators.
The agitators.
The educated ones.
Mockery, curses, and criticism disguised as analysis ran rampant, turning the lower ranks into complete chaos.
Of course, that didn’t mean the upper ranks were fighting with any more dignity.
Transferred players should be evaluated conservatively.
That was one of the league’s unspoken rules. No matter how good their previous results were, it was considered wrong to give generous evaluations to those who hadn’t proven themselves in the current league.
Yet this time, ranks 17 through 13 in the Korean League were all transferred players. An extremely unusual occurrence. Of course, this was only from the Korean fans’ perspective.
All of them had been evaluated as top-tier in their respective leagues. Now ranked in the teens, their fans couldn’t help but feel uncomfortable.
But this side was still relatively tame. The side where the real unwritten rule had been broken was actually the other one.
It was an unwritten rule that ranker debuts started from the lower ranks.
Yet Lee Shin’s children had completely shattered that rule by all three entering the single digits.
In this situation, when Park Su-bin pushed Shingung down to 2nd and took 1st place himself, hell broke loose on the community.
King, Empress, Emperor, God.
These were titles that, by national rule, were never to be used lightly unless one’s skill had been thoroughly verified. Among them, ‘God’ was an especially tremendous honor granted directly by the Bureau only to those truly worthy.
And they had given it to Park Su-bin.
To a mere twenty-year-old youth.
It wasn’t for nothing that people were searching for the Mountain King, who had retired from the rankings over a decade ago. This wasn’t mere jealousy—it was a matter of pride, and further still, a question of the league’s honor.
Naturally, all sorts of mockery and criticism followed.
But whenever Lee Shin’s children fell into crisis, certain people always appeared.
The Yongbung deployed.
* * *
“As expected, the bugs wouldn’t stay quiet.”
Just as predicted, those who had been demanding proof of qualification and stirring controversy were now losing their minds and hurling raw insults. Look at them dragging the retired Mountain King into this and trying to divide people.
“Everyone knows this flavor.”
Park Seong-cheol (Toegail-jwa) nodded as he watched the situation unfold exactly as expected. Ranks 8, 6, and 1 respectively. With the addition of Hwarang at 3rd, it would have been stranger if there had been no complaints.
“Then let’s deploy.”
Park Seong-cheol’s fingers moved calmly and precisely across the keyboard.
The Bureau’s criteria for selecting rankers were far stricter than people imagined. Guild performance and league results were obvious, but they also evaluated influence across the entire guild scene and society, and even personally visited to measure physical condition and magic power.
And naturally, these standards were even stricter—never lenient—toward first-time rankers.
This was why officials and experts refrained from speaking carelessly even amid the controversy.
Just as the gentlemanly(?) Park Seong-cheol was defending Lee Shin’s children with these facts against the vicious anti-Yongbung crowd—
In the neighboring room of the same house, Bae Ji-ae (Rirauonni) was wiping away tears.
“Sniff, our kids…… sob, they’re so admirable…… sob!!”
Yes, this was how it should be.
Bae Ji-ae believed the world was functioning correctly.
Round undefeated, highest points, Korean champions, Asian champions. We achieved all that, so if it’s not our kids becoming rankers, then who? At this rate, even single-digit ranks would look cheap……
“W-wait a second.”
Suddenly, the teary-eyed Bae Ji-ae’s gaze sharpened.
“Now that I think about it…… that’s right?”
The reason our ‘Geoshin’ Park Su-bin received the title of ‘God’? Because he crushed Shingung! That’s perfectly right. Praise the Bureau.
But why did ‘Genius’ Yeon-woo and ‘Blitz’ Ri-ra only get ‘mere’ 6th and 8th? That’s completely wrong. The Bureau are bastards!!
Hey tears, stay back for a moment.
Bae Ji-ae’s fingers flew across the keyboard.
1345.
1st, 3rd, 4th, 5th.
Excluding 2nd place Shingung, the rest should all belong to our Great Emperor Mir!
Bae Ji-ae didn’t stop at suppressing the anti-Yongbung comments—she went on to make even more aggressive statements.
While the Yongbung fiercely declared they would defend the Children of God with their lives, the fan club president Jangs Eun-soon (Myeongpumhalmam) was busy in a different way.
“Oh my, oh my, this came out so well.”
On the right, a young Park Su-bin toddling about; on the left, Geoshin Park Su-bin summoning a mechanical giant.
A lenticular photocard that changed depending on the angle.
“What about Genius, Blitz, and Hwarang?”
“Here are the finished products.”
“Oh my, these are wonderful too. Could I see the cases? I ordered them with engravings so they can be used as keyrings.”
“Of course. Here.”
“Oh my my my, beautiful! Look at this quality. I’m so satisfied!”
“Haha, I’m also a Mir fan, so I put some personal touch into it.”
“How could…… As expected, educated people are different. No need to see anything else. Please produce one million units immediately.”
Jangs Eun-soon had experienced every kind of battle—fan battles, life battles, and even aerial battles.
The best were always subject to jealousy and envy. It was as natural as the sun rising in the east, something that couldn’t be stopped.
In such times, if your faction was small, you’d easily be swept away by public opinion……
Fortunately, we were already the best.
A world where ten million Yongbung was no joke.
Now that foreign influx had surged with the Asian championship, the Yongbung era had truly evolved into a fan club on the level of national power.
So they had to show a dignity worthy of that status.
Thus, there were those who attacked with gentlemanly(?) logic like Toegail-jwa.
Those who made such aggressive statements that even fellow Yongbung went “Hmm……” like Rirauonni.
And those who responded with dignity, like Myeongpumhalmam, saying this too was a burden the greatest guild must bear.
Just as the ranking war—split between ‘Yongbung VS the rest of the teams’—continued endlessly……
Finally, it appeared!!
Coming Soon
Opening Match 1st Round.
VS
Saturday 6:00 PM. Busan Yeongdo Yongwanggung.