Chapter 22. The Pride of the Mighty Continent!
Chapter 22. The Pride of the Mighty Continent!
As always, my remarks were followed by major fallout.
Online communities were a given.
[ Author: Saintess's Foot Wiper ]
[ Title: Win a fistfight and I'll give it to you ]
[ Content: Did he actually say that lol ]
↳ Wow lol lol lol didn't think he'd be that blatant
↳ How were the Chinese gonna react to this
↳ Well for starters this guy's never traveling to China in his life lol lol lol
[ Author: anon ]
[ Title: But what if they really do show up for a fistfight? ]
[ Content: What if they swallow their pride and actually come fight? ]
↳ What do you mean what if, he'd just get his ass kicked lol lol
↳ Still, matchups were a thing. He probably wouldn't go down without a fight?
↳ Yeah, there's that one hunter who deflects all attacks, too
Naturally, the media was the same.
There were concerns about future international tensions.
[ Korean Hunter's Hardline Remarks, Risk of Spilling into Korea-China Diplomatic Conflict? ]
[ 'If You're Confident, Win. Win and You Get Everything.' Korean Hunter's Provocation — Possibility of Diplomatic Fallout? ]
In particular, news articles reporting that China was quite displeased dominated the headlines.
[ Korea, Who Stole What Rightfully Belongs to the Chinese Nation, Now Openly Resorts to Provocation? Chinese Netizens Enraged ]
'If only they would pick a proper fight instead of that nonsense.'
Because then I could openly put on a sword dance.
Justification matters in international society.
[ Overflowing Holy-Power Pouch has donated 10,000 Watts! ]
- Ugh, so frustrating!! That's not how you do it, you dumbass
And while everyone else was taking the situation seriously, I was casually running a game stream.
A two-player game that requires some brainpower and luck rather than physical skill.
"Hero... you shouldn't go that way..."
"Not this one?"
Sorry.
I was a bit weak in the brains department.
I was the type who's always believed that if your body was strong, your brain never had to suffer.
[ Saintess's Foot Wiper has donated 100,000 Watts! ]
- Hey, we're screwed, check the news right now
"?"
The donation sound that plays for amounts over 100,000 won rang out.
The chat was also mentioning the news.
When I went to a portal site, a live video was up on the largest banner.
The title was: China's Official Position Regarding the Korean Hunter's Remarks.
"What's this?"
When I clicked the video, a Chinese man with what appeared to be a fairly high-ranking position was standing at a podium, making a statement.
- Recently, a Korean hunter has carried out a unilateral provocation against us. At first, we regarded this as a rash statement born from ignorance and deemed it unworthy of a response.
Subtitles appeared at the bottom of the video in real time, alongside chat messages from viewers watching simultaneously.
- We can only look upon this hot-blooded youth from a small country with pity, as he indulges in bravado without fully comprehending the order of the world.
The man paused briefly, slowly scanned the reporters, and continued speaking.
"So what's the point these bastards are trying to make?"
- However, in order to restore the wounded pride of the Chinese people, we will accept the Korean hunter's proposal.
I calmly watched the press conference video to the end.
Refined phrasing, a dignified expression, an outward attitude flaunting the magnanimity befitting a great power.
Especially the way the man prattled on about how 'words once spoken cannot be taken back...'
But the core of the press conference was just one thing.
"In the end, you've got your eyes on my artifacts too, huh?"
A chuckle escaped me.
I knew it.
Pride, face, history, the spirit of a great nation.
They strung together all these grand-sounding words, but the essence was simple.
They wanted them. So they'd seize even my artifacts in one fell swoop.
"A good chance to relieve some stress."
[ Saintess's Foot Wiper has donated 50,000 Watts! ]
- Hey, isn't this seriously bad? They're gonna come at us grinding their teeth
Grind away.
I wouldn't bat an eye.
I'd heard there was a Chinese hunter who specialized in deflecting attacks.
If my guess was right, that hunter would come.
If they had any brains, they'd know a head-on fight offered no chance of victory.
---
What determines the strength of an S-rank hunter?
It's their overwhelming mana capacity, application ability, and gate clear count — things entirely on another level from A-rank.
But that didn't mean all S-ranks possessed equal strength.
For the Baekdusan Gate, there were certainly S-ranks who could clear it by forming a team.
It was simply that doing so was so difficult, and the value gained in return wasn't great enough.
Because everyone's life was precious.
'So there must be some who feel it's a perfectly manageable fight, once they analyze the matchup.'
"Hero, the spar is set for the Seoul Olympic Main Stadium."
"Alright, let's go."
After the press conference ended, the Association President and various other high-ranking officials came to my house.
From worries asking why I'd made such a provocation, to questions about what I planned to do now.
My answer was simple.
Win.
With such an overwhelming difference that they'd never dare meet my eyes again.
And I deliberately inflated the scale of it all.
For safety, spectators weren't allowed in, but we made it possible for each country's broadcasts to air our duel.
When I arrived at the Seoul Olympic Main Stadium, I faced the massive crowd waiting outside, unable to enter.
"Hunter! Your opponent is China's elite hunter. Do you truly believe you have a chance of winning?"
"The Chinese side is already confident this is a fight with a predetermined outcome. What are your thoughts on that?"
"Some are opining that this duel has transcended personal matters and become a battle of national pride. Do you agree?"
I gave no answer to their questions and walked inside.
Just before entering, I said one thing to the reporters who were waiting for a response.
"There's some entertaining content on my stream. If you're bored, go check it out."
The reporters, every last one of them, nodded and pulled out their phones.
And there, a very entertaining event was unfolding.
Point betting was open on whether Song Hoon would win or lose.
[Isn't Hero winning the obvious bet?]
[Right, does the Chinese hunter not feel pain? lol lol]
[But doesn't he also feel pain when hit?]
[Doesn't seem like this guy does;;]
When I went inside, men in suits were visible at the stadium entrance.
And standing among them were other hunters presumed to be S-rank.
'Those were the ones.'
"Hm... just a big body, looks utterly unremarkable."
He muttered in Chinese and offered me a handshake.
I extended my hand as well.
Ready to break his hand right there if he tried anything funny.
— Crrrunch...!
"Yang Tenjin. The name of the man who will crush the noses of you arrogant bastards."
After the handshake, he muttered to himself and then turned and disappeared somewhere.
"Laila, what's he saying?"
"Well, he's introducing himself... are you curious?"
"No, not really."
---
"Sir Yang, please rest well then."
Bowing politely, the aide left and carefully closed the door.
Yang Tenjin pulled out a tablet and was watching Song Hoon's clear videos.
"Hm... fools who are merely strong with brute force are a dime a dozen in China too."
He kept replaying the footage and repeatedly paused at the scene where Laila appeared.
"Magic? It looks like she's chanting some peculiar incantation... doesn't seem like Korean..."
He wasn't really curious about Song Hoon anyway.
Because Yang Tenjin planned to exploit the loophole in Song Hoon's words and duel the woman named Laila instead.
— Knock, knock...
"Enter."
"Sir Yang, it's time."
"I lost track of time. Let's prepare and depart immediately."
They headed to the wide stadium, where only officials and hunters from both nations were present.
And a drone was flying around Song Hoon's side.
'A so-called hunter reduced to playing the clown like that... this was why small country folk were... tch.'
Accompanied by their respective officials, they exchanged contracts.
If China won, the artifacts and the monster corpses. If Song Hoon won, the ownership rights to the Forbidden City.
As soon as the contract signing was done, Song Hoon tossed something to Yang Tenjin and muttered.
"Hm? Earrings and a ring?"
"Sir Yang, he says for you to hold onto these..."
The aide beside him hesitated, gauging Yang Tenjin's reaction.
"It's fine. Tell me exactly what that bastard is spouting, without filtering."
"He said that since he'll be more than enough even without the artifacts, you should hold onto them... and that he'll collect them once the fight is over."
"Insolent whelp..."
Song Hoon walked toward the center of the stadium with a smirk.
And to Yang Tenjin, he was pitiful.
Because soon, their faces would be painted with despair.
"Wait."
"?"
"I will duel not you, but that woman."
As he said this, the aide stepped between Yang Tenjin and Song Hoon, relaying the message.
"What's he saying?"
As expected, he protested, just as I'd predicted.
But in a situation the whole world was watching, I presented definitive evidence.
- Whoever wins in a fight against one of us shall take everything.
It was footage from when Song Hoon had that short interview with the reporters.
"Why? If you want to back out now, I might show a little leniency — provided you hand over your artifacts, the monster corpses, and Korea shows some sincerity...?"
Accept it or not, either was fine.
No, rather, it was better if he didn't accept.
After all, when a spar gets heated, fatal accidents do sometimes occur.