Chapter 106. We Have to Cosplay at the Event?
Chapter 106. We Have to Cosplay at the Event?
After roughly a day of rest and reorganization, the stream resumed.
The public was informed only of Jang Yun-jae's drug use.
The "punishment" Jang Ho-jin had carried out on Jang Yun-jae remained a secret shared only among us.
Lee Chae-hyun had also been subjected to the same drug test.
"Hunter Lee Chae-hyun... the skills you displayed in this competition were so unprecedented. To avoid public suspicion, it would be best to proceed with the test."
The method was different, but the technique she used produced the same result as Jang Yun-jae's.
Yet she nodded with steady, unwavering eyes.
"Of course. I have nothing to hide."
Naturally, her test results were clean.
In fact, she even voluntarily underwent an additional, more detailed examination.
With all doubts cleared, she confidently ascended the first-place podium.
"Now... defying everyone's expectations, the E-rank hunter has won!!!"
"This is... incredible! Unbelievable. As you all know, Hunter Lee Chae-hyun also took a drug test, and it came back completely negative."
As if shattering the heavy atmosphere, the casters' commentary and the roaring cheers of the crowd erupted.
On the screen, the name of the woman who had fought tenaciously to the end was displayed.
[ Tournament 1st Place: E-rank Lee Chae-hyun ]
Some voices suggested that Kang Ha-jin and Lee Chae-hyun should have a rematch, but Kang Ha-jin's injuries were too severe.
He had sustained damage to his abdomen, ribs, and joints, requiring long-term treatment.
Unable to even participate in the 3rd/4th place decider match, he was automatically ranked 4th.
"Won..."
Lee Chae-hyun gazed up at the results, her pupils trembling faintly.
She was shining brighter than anyone else on the podium.
"Congratulations, Hunter Lee Chae-hyun."
"Association President..."
The Association President, handing her the trophy, wore a warm smile.
As she shook hands with the Association President, took photos, and stepped down, her stride was filled with confidence.
---
I watched her enter the backstage through the screen.
Beside me, Laila spoke up.
"Hero, will you simply leave the Heukpae alone?"
"Honestly... I was going to hold the Heukpae responsible too, you know...?"
What Jang Yun-jae had done, and Lee Chae-hyun, who nearly died because of it.
But Jang Ho-jin had already delivered his own judgment.
He severed his tendons, ensured he would never walk again, and officially expelled him from the guild.
'I didn't think he'd go that far...'
I had intended to take away his power as a hunter.
The way I did with the Chinese S-rank hunter.
I had planned to sentence him to live as an ordinary person, stripped of his hunter status.
'But to render his entire lower body useless...'
And so, I said nothing more about it.
Jang Yun-jae had already fallen to the deepest pit a human being could reach.
'He said it was, at minimum, a death sentence...'
— Clunk!
Holding her trophy, Lee Chae-hyun entered the backstage.
"Big Sis!"
The moment she came in, Lee Chae-hyun embraced Laila and began nuzzling against her vigorously.
'...?'
"I won!"
Not only Laila and I, but the viewers watching my stream also shared in the support.
[Congratulations]
[Congrats on the win, but I'm so damn jealous of the nuzzling...]
[Wow, that's insane]
[ Overflowing Holy-Power Pouch has donated 300,000 Watts! ]
- Go buy something delicious with this lol
Laila smiled benevolently and stroked the head of Lee Chae-hyun, who was buried in her arms.
After nuzzling for a good long while(?), Lee Chae-hyun lifted her head and looked at me.
"Chairman, thank you so much..."
"Well, you're the one who worked hard for it."
---
All kinds of news media and broadcast channels began reporting on Lee Chae-hyun's victory at explosive speed.
[ E-rank Hunter Defeats Other C-ranks to Claim a Brilliant Victory! ]
[ Lee Chae-hyun's Technique, Overturning the Paradigm of Magic Usage? ]
[ Thought He Was Just Strong... Unknown Hunter, Also a Monster With an Eye for Talent? ]
In particular, several association magic researchers appeared as expert panels on a live broadcast.
One of them analyzed Lee Chae-hyun's technique and stated:
"That isn't a simple discharge of magic. It's a structure where magic is momentarily rotated, forced into a sort of overload state, and then all the power is poured out in a single burst. The technique itself is astonishing, but... it's even more astonishing that there are no side effects at all."
"...Wouldn't there be any side effects to her body?"
"I don't know the exact details yet, but if I had to point something out, apart from the tremendous sense of exhaustion that follows..."
Another expert panel continued the explanation.
"Aside from that, no damage was found to her magic circuits. This goes beyond simple fortitude; it's highly likely a precisely controlled technique. Ah, to put it simply..."
The panel took a moment and suddenly chuckled.
"To give an analogy... think of it as overclocking a CPU. However, a type of overclocking where the usual drawbacks—like reduced component lifespan or system instability—don't exist at all, and only the benefits remain."
"..."
"Ah, as the previous speaker noted, if you really had to name a downside, there's none other than being completely drained of energy afterward."
As this broadcast aired, the entire hunter society was abuzz.
The single technique she had used.
It had allowed an E-rank like her to stand against a C-rank using drugs, even if just for a moment.
This technique wasn't just a 'game-winning move'. It was a dream for all low-rank hunters and a weapon that could target high-rank hunters.
Netizens hiding behind anonymity did not hide their desires.
[ Author: Anonymous ]
[ Title: Shouldn't a technique method like that be made public? ]
[ Content: If it's made public, won't the overall level of South Korean hunters just go up? ]
└ For real, they should make it public
└ They just want to keep the good stuff for themselves, tsk tsk
└ Shouldn't the Association step in and disclose it themselves?
└ Yeah, how damn long do we had to be stuck at rank D forever?
In the increasingly heated atmosphere, not everyone shared that opinion.
[ Author: Anonymous ]
[ Title: You bastards who keep demanding to be taught techniques for free ]
[ Content: Have you guys just killed off your conscience or what?
In reality, most guilds treat technique security as life or death,
and yet you're going around just saying 'teach us', doing that kind of nonsense? Really sick of seeing it. ]
└ I was just jealous and annoyed because I couldn't create something like that
└ For real, why were there so many people with a thief's mentality in Korea?
└ No would to put in the effort, no skill to join a guild lol 'give it to us' shut up
└ In the first place, if you watch Song Hoon's replays, that person genuinely worked his blood, sweat, and tears. The idea that he should just hand it over was just wtf haha
└ Like, just unbelievable, right?
Netizens were chattering fervently in online communities.
Meanwhile, the government, the Association, and the guilds were on high alert about this technique.
[ Author: Anonymous ]
[ Title: But... isn't this just an extra life? ]
[ Content: There are quite a few people who die when their mana hits rock bottom and can't escape, right?
But isn't this something you could use at a critical moment, just once, to either run away or counterattack?
You could even use it to rescue a comrade.
If you use this technique and still die, well...
Uhm... just think of it as you entered a gate above your level lol ]
All hunters were people who worked with their lives on the line.
Naturally, their salaries were very high.
Even the lowest-rank hunter earned more than the starting salary of a new employee at a major corporation.
---
At that moment.
After the competition ended and she had received countless congratulations from those around her, she was planning to rest at home as usual.
Yet dozens of guilds requested interviews and meetings, and massive corporations stood in line holding contracts.
Some foreign companies even made huge offers.
- If you share the technique with us, we will provide royalties for it and a lifelong pension. We will also provide you with safe security and even handle the paperwork for immigration, if you wish.
All these approaches were exceedingly polite, courteous, and even desperate.
However, not a single one showed any hint of trying to forcibly take her technique or extract information from her.
Because everyone knew.
'There isn't anyone bold enough to dare mess with her.'
'Everyone knew what happens if you poke your nose where it doesn't belong, right?'
No one even considered bothering Lee Chae-hyun.
That was because they knew very well who stood behind her.
In the face of overwhelming power, greed bowed its head.
So those who hid their true intentions approached in a friendly manner instead.
They approached under names like 'major sponsor', 'technique research supporter', or 'friendly partner'.
"Annoying..."
Yet she didn't even bat an eye at those staggering sums of money.
She already had enough money, and she was not the type to indulge in luxury.
"All I need is enough to live comfortably, what's with all this..."
— Clunk!
Just then, someone opened her door and came in.
"Chae-hyun..."
It was her older brother. He looked haggard, as if he had been through severe torment somewhere.
"What? You're early today."
"Can you go somewhere with me for a moment?"
"I'm busy right now."
Lee Chae-hyun was slouched in a tracksuit, sitting crookedly.
A snack in one hand and a mouse in the other.
On the monitor in front of her, Laila and Song Hoon's stream was playing.
"B-busy...?"
She knew he was being pestered by requests from people wanting an introduction to Lee Chae-hyun.
'For me, just bumming around at home like this was the best.'
With his shoulders slumped, her brother closed the door and left; the sight of his retreating figure was a bit pitiful.
But soon, her ears perked up at the comment coming from the stream.
- An ad...? Laila has to cosplay?
---
The ad proposal that had come before.
I was looking at it quite favorably.
After all, it was a game I had spent a lot of money on and enjoyed thoroughly.
"She has to cosplay at the event?"
"Well, it's not you who'll be doing it... Probably Miss Laila will..."
Truth be told, those around me had expressed concerns about an ad like this.
Thinking it might somehow affect the image of the Unknown Hunter.
'So that means... Laila would be wearing that outfit, right?'
Considerable... curiosity arose within me.