Chapter 72
Chapter 72
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 72
Chapter Title: Flag
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“… The one who raided the Dwarf King's Palace, the Savior of the Dwarves, the Bearer of Steel Jaws, collector of interests….”
“How do I turn this off!”
“… Recently massacred 157 orcs, and for the sake of interests, could even eat rocks….”
I fumbled frantically with the system window.
It took a while longer for the voice to finally stop echoing.
As if the booming voice from moments ago had been a lie, the surroundings fell silent once more.
“No one heard that, right?”
I glanced around, wondering if anyone might have caught it.
Fortunately, the street was empty.
It probably hadn't reached my neighbor, Jeong Man-ho. Maybe.
“That was close….”
I let out a sigh and looked down at the pristine white flag in my hand with mixed feelings.
The flag itself, emblazoned with a golden hourglass pattern, was still to my liking.
Above all, I loved that it was my own personal symbol.
It was just that the flashy, embarrassing self-introduction feature from earlier was too much to bear.
“If I had a guild, I'd hang it right in the lobby.”
Of course, the megaphone function would have to stay sealed forever.
I shrugged and headed inside the house.
Useful or not, first things first—I'd brag about it online.
I sat down at the computer and opened the Hunter Gallery as usual.
But the gallery's vibe was different from normal.
The entire board was plastered with one topic.
[Breaking News] New A-Rank Hunter Officially Announced wtf]
[Heard it's actually a foreigner?]
[The hype around this A-Rank feels off to me….]
It was only then that I remembered the text from Poongdeng a few days ago.
[A-Rank Hunter official announcement coming next week. Coordinated with the government. Personal info will be controlled as much as possible, so no worries.]
“Ah, right. It was today.”
I'd been so busy with fulfilling days lately that I'd forgotten.
I set aside the post I was going to make and started reading the ones already up.
Nonstop speculation posts from people.
“Let's check what the actual news says first.”
These days, even news came from the gallery.
It was the fastest and most accurate.
Sure enough, the monthly best board had a post with news screenshots.
Kindly compiled from every media outlet.
I read the headlines gratefully.
[Korean Government Officially Announces New A-Rank Hunter Registration]
[Hunter Association: “Personal info withheld for national security. Please refrain from excessive rumors.”]
[Recently cleared 20th floor… Potential S-Rank or higher?]
Several related headlines filled the screen.
Among them were plenty of trashy clickbait articles chasing views.
[Hunter brain drain overseas. Isn't the public at fault?]
[New A-Rank… Actually S-Rank Kim OO's secret child]
[Unknown identity gets full perks… Public outrage explodes]
[New A-Rank is actually idol alum C…]
“No, do these people have no shame?”
I let out a disbelieving chuckle.
What if some hot-headed hunter saw this and complained? What then?
They should be grateful I'm mild-mannered and kind.
I scrolled back up and clicked on the top legitimate news article.
The content was purely formal.
‘…The hunter in question, who proved their qualifications by clearing the 20th floor a few days ago, has decided not to disclose personal information for the time being in consultation with the Association. This measure ensures the hunter's safety and future activities…’
That was about it.
No details on when I cleared the 20th floor, my class, or even my gender.
As Poongdeng said, info control was indeed in place to some extent.
I nodded in satisfaction and scrolled down to the comments.
Truth be told, I'd read the post just to get to the comments.
Sure enough, all sorts of people had already chimed in.
First up, comments speculating by naming promising guild talents.
ㄴ Isn't this someone from Hwayeon Guild? Rumors they've been prime for promotion since last year.
ㄴ Nah, it's Lee Jin-hyuk. That's a real powerhouse.
ㄴ Y'all talking nonsense lol. Not guild-affiliated, solo hunter. Heard it from a connection.
ㄴㄴ Your "connection" is probably the cleaning lady lol
Or folks getting nationalistic about hunter counts and those mocking them.
ㄴ Damn, finally overtook Japan in A-Ranks lololol
ㄴㄴ Ugh, stop with the nationalism spam…
ㄴㄴ But at this point, isn't a little national pride fair?
ㄴ Still can't beat China though~~
ㄴㄴ I love Beijing's Tiananmen.
Of course, there were plenty pissed off too.
ㄴ The hunters you simp for would get one-shot by Demigod's punch lol
ㄴ Fr, scrap this K-Hunter nurturing crap and take US aid already
But the biggest group was just straight-up jealous ones venting envy.
ㄴ Sigh, wanna awaken so bad...
ㄴ Awakening ain't the end. Gotta have the chops to climb the whole tower.
ㄴ Fr, I'd get cut at floor 1 even if I awakened…
ㄴ That guy's got a free pass to life now. So jealous.
ㄴ World's so unfair…
I read every single comment carefully.
A smile crept onto my lips unbidden.
A thrilling buzz rose from my toes.
“Sip, something feels off though….”
But just watching was starting to make my fingers itch.
I was dying to join in on this massive bait.
Finally, I couldn't hold back and put my hands on the keyboard.
“This much should be fine, right?”
[Title: That's me?]
[Author: ?? (77T.77U)]
[Content: I'm the A-Rank from the news.]
ㄴ Ugh, TowerLurker's at it again. Go eat some rice.
ㄴ Bro's not A-Rank, he's Special Attention Soldier.
ㄴ This guy's gotta be everywhere.
Same reactions as always.
People still saw me as just some crazy troll.
Not a single one believed me.
But then the mood started shifting bit by bit.
Some folks began posting serious analysis.
ㄴ But seriously, TowerLurker is an A-Rank, right? Thinking back to that gear cert, anything less doesn't add up.
ㄴ I'm an A-Rank gallery user, seen TowerLurker there too.
ㄴㄴ Fml, country's doomed. A guy galler-ing 20 hours a day is A-Rank?
“It's not weird to browse galleries. Even S-Ranks do…”
Honestly, Poongdeng writing custom macro posts daily was way weirder than me.
I just did the occasional nonsense troll and cute bait posts.
No reason for this treatment.
Separate from my grievances, the Hunter Gallery was slowly accepting me as A-Rank.
The evidence was overwhelming, after all.
I smiled in satisfaction.
“Hm?”
I'd been sneakily upvoting posts defending me with alts.
Then I spotted a post that furrowed my brows.
[Title: Why so many alts for one troll? This his personal gallery?]
[Content: Stop namedropping this troll ffs]
But opposition like that got crushed instantly by other users' counterattacks.
ㄴ Fact: OP's broke and attention-starved, mad as hell.
ㄴ Jealous? Go cert a Legendary item then.
ㄴ Dropped 100 chickens, checks out.
ㄴ Honestly, calling it "namedropping" is moot—he already is lol
“Wow… Justice is still alive…”
I nearly teared up in感动.
Strangers I'd never met fighting for me, shielding me from hate.
Now I had a fandom defending me even without me stepping in.
No need for sockpuppets anymore.
“This is the power of being named…?”
The debate raged on.
My A-Rank status was basically accepted as fact.
But attention had shifted elsewhere.
‘So is TowerLurker the newly announced A-Rank?’
Then came the decisive counter.
One user posted a timeline analysis of my activity history.
[Title: Proof) Why TowerLurker can't be the new A-Rank.txt]
[Content: TL;DR in three lines.
1. TowerLurker is A-Rank.
2. But he's been A-Rank all along. Not the newly announced one. Timelines don't match.]
ㄴ Can't this guy count?
ㄴ But yeah, sounds legit?
No one could refute the logical breakdown.
Eventually, opinion swung fully in the new direction.
Fresh logic backed it up right after.
ㄴ Yeah, that tracks. Government's keeping it classified, no info release, so who'd be a psycho yelling "That's me?" everywhere?
ㄴ Huh, true.
ㄴ Then who's the new A-Rank?
ㄴ Dunno. But not TowerLurker.
“Smack…”
I smacked my lips at the monitor.
Conflicting emotions welled up.
Hiding my identity perfectly was satisfying, no doubt.
But it stung not shouting that I was Korea's hottest topic right now.
“Post some extra proof here?”
A sudden impulse gripped me.
What if I revealed just a bit more of my identity?
If I pointed out no existing A-Rank matched me?
Everyone would freak, and I'd reclaim my throne as gallery king.
“Sigh, gotta hold back.”
But I summoned superhuman patience to suppress it.
I had to endure.
I knew from experience.
It was way more fun letting people figure it out themselves.
Watching them speculate about me beat spilling it myself.
I was the kid who could wait for marshmallows.
In the end, I held off on more proof and quietly observed.
“Oh right, gotta cert the flag too….”
I'd gotten so caught up in my own drama that I forgot my original plan.
I spread the flag on the floor and snapped a pic at an angle with no shadows.
Naturally, posting to the Mage Gallery.
[Cleared 31F. Got my personal flag and mark too. Anyone else got one of these?]
Not long after posting, the lurking mages started emerging one by one.
ㄴPoongdeng: Design's pretty badass…. Never got a mark.
ㄴPoongdeng: Maybe I should make my own personal mark?
ㄴPoongdeng: Green typhoon or Spirit Bomb vibe, whaddya think?
ㄴFridge: You in middle school?
ㄴPoongdeng: (Poongmurook con)
ㄴMagicIsFirepower: Oh, this. Only for those who steadily cleared late-30F quests and built enough affinity.
ㄴMagicIsFirepower: Later on, NPC reactions change based on flag rank—pretty fun.
ㄴMagicIsFirepower: But best part is it recites all your accumulated titles when activated. Fun and touching.
“This is touching? This guy's a bit off too.”
Tyrannical Slave Lord.
Where's the touching part in that?
I shook my head.
ㄴMagicIsFirepower: But how'd you snag a flag right off the bat?
ㄴ ??(88R.Y88): Broke one quest, they gave it. Met the Shimoe too, super friendly.
ㄴFridge: Newbie playing by different rules ain't new…. Not surprised anymore.
Then, pKkaechu, who'd been quietly watching, commented.
ㄴ pKkaechu: Your pace is insanely fast…. You'll catch up to my floor in no time.
Reading that last comment wrapped me in a strange sentiment.
Newbie.
From my first day in Mage Gallery, that's what they called me.
But I'd grown at a speed beyond their common sense, closing in on their heels before they knew it.
“Once I catch up, am I not a newbie anymore…?”
An inexplicable pang of regret washed over me.
I stared blankly at the monitor for a moment.
What happens if I overtake all these people?