Chapter 54

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Translator: Wjin

Chapter: 54

Chapter Title: Lee Jaeyoung

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Lee Jaeyoung was always alone.

His parents had passed away early, and his only family—his grandmother—came home late every night.

She went out every day to work at someone else's house, and Jaeyoung always harbored resentment toward her for it.

"I'm bored."

He threw tantrums like this every day, so his grandmother bought him a computer.

From then on, Jaeyoung's daily routine shifted to eating and playing on the computer.

In the game world, Jaeyoung was free. He got along cheerfully with others and was even pretty good at it.

"Grandma, look at this! My game rank shot up so high!"

"...I'm really tired, Jaeyoung. Can we talk about it later?"

Whenever she got home, his grandmother would lie down in bed, claiming exhaustion.

Jaeyoung's resentment toward her, who slept like the dead, began to build up bit by bit.

'I want to go out and play too. I want to talk with Grandma.'

He wanted to lash out at her but couldn't bring himself to do it.

She was his only family, and her fatigue wasn't some fake act—it was real.

That might be why Jaeyoung felt he had to make money no matter what.

'If I succeed, Grandma won't have to work herself to death anymore.'

But what could a mere elementary school kid possibly do?

Jaeyoung poured out these worries to his gaming friend, Jang Seongtae.

They were around the same age and lived in the same area, which was how they'd grown close.

Jaeyoung made up his mind right then and there to become a pro gamer.

That way, his grandma wouldn't have to toil for money anymore, and she'd stay by his side. He believed it with all his heart.

Seongtae didn't seem to know much either, but hearing that good grades were key gave Jaeyoung a goal.

'I'm already pretty good, so it'll happen fast!'

Jaeyoung pulled out all the emergency cash his grandma had stashed away and bolted out the door without a plan.

And so began his reckless runaway life.

At first, it was pure bliss—the thrill of freedom he'd never tasted before, the liberty to game all day.

But as time dragged on, Jaeyoung grew anxious.

If it weren't for Seongtae occasionally dropping by the PC bang and the 'Midas A' clan he'd joined through him, he might have given up and gone home.

'...I'm definitely becoming a pro gamer! I'll win the Sudden Attack tournament and march home proud!'

Grown-ups started approaching such a Jaeyoung too.

"Hey, kid. You skipping school?"

"...Yeah."

"Why? Runaway?"

Men reeking of sour booze circled him, scanning the surroundings.

Without warning, they rummaged through his pockets and snatched his money.

"Look at this haul! Gotta be almost 500,000 won!"

"Aaaah! No! Give it back!"

The homeless man clubbed the charging Jaeyoung without mercy.

Jaeyoung took a hit to the face and crumpled to the ground.

Slap!

"Shut it! No way this kinda cash belongs to a street rat like you. You stole it, huh?"

"N-no... My gra..."

Jaeyoung struggled up, but the bum kicked him hard in the gut.

Thud!

"Gah!"

"I said shut it?"

In agony for the first time in his life, Jaeyoung gasped and retched.

"Let's grab a drink with this."

"Hell yeah!"

The bums dumped Jaeyoung in a filthy alley and took off.

No passersby stopped to help or even ask if he was okay.

Jaeyoung lay there forever before staggering up.

Thankfully, they hadn't found the single 10,000-won bill deep in his inner pocket.

'...I'll go home.'

But his feet wouldn't move, glued to the spot against his will.

In the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠end, he headed to his usual PC bang.

The owner had started frowning and giving him side-eye whenever he walked in.

It was because of the stench coming off him.

"...Just one hour, then I'll go."

Jaeyoung sat down and fired up Sudden Attack.

Playing this game made all his current troubles melt away.

'My rank's way up, and I've got Seongtae and the clan. Everything's gonna work out. I'll be a pro gamer soon.'

Bang!

In the game, Jaeyoung's character was strong and skilled as ever.

But the screen started blurring.

'Huh? What's wrong with this?'

He wiped it, but it stayed foggy.

It wasn't the screen.

Tears he hadn't noticed welling up made it impossible to play.

His aim shook, and he died to the enemy.

Jaeyoung tried to quit the game.

But then a whisper popped up.

'...The clan master!'

He was the leader of 'Midas A' and the one who'd recruited him.

Jaeyoung wiped his tears and typed back.

Jaeyoung watched Kangyul's messages without much thought.

But the next one left him stunned.

'Pros...?'

It felt like a lifeline dropping into his lonely pit.

The brief chat ended, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠and Jaeyoung headed straight to Midas Corporation.

The clan master, Kangyul, had said they needed to sign a contract.

Luckily, he'd only played an hour at the PC bang, so he had enough for a taxi.

Midas Corporation's building was so massive he had to crane his neck all the way back to see the top.

'...8th floor, right?'

Jaeyoung swallowed hard, nervous, and stepped inside.

He got off the elevator and cautiously opened the door.

There sat a kid about his age, munching on candy.

Slurp—

'Is that kid a gamer here too?'

The boy kindly offered him some candy and told him to head inside.

And just like that, Jaeyoung signed with 'Midas,' becoming a pro gamer.

From then on, nothing but good things happened.

He reunited with his beloved grandma, went back to school, and prepped for the tournament with his clanmates.

In the qualifiers, Kangyul stepped aside so he could compete.

'...He's younger than me, but so mature.'

Maybe that's why everyone called him 'President'.

Even after practice ended and he got home, Jaeyoung kept grinding Sudden Attack.

He wasn't as good a shot as Seongtae, as bold as Mr. Im Honggyu, or as good at callouts as Kangyul—but he wanted to work hard anyway.

'I have to get even better than this.'

Unyielding spirit and endless effort.

That was Jaeyoung's unrecognized talent.

And then, the long-awaited finals.

'Zynix Team is seriously tough.'

He fought desperately, but the match stayed razor-close.

"Im Honggyu! Kim Min-a! OnceNa's pushing B! We gotta block the plant!"

Kangyul's urgent voice rang out.

Jaeyoung was even closer to B site than they were.

For some reason, he hunkered down behind the wall at the back of B site.

'Gotta follow Kangyul's call!'

They'd never lost when listening to him.

This time would be no different.

Kim Min-a and Im Honggyu clashed with the enemies.

Some foes dropped, but so did Kim Min-a.

"Im Honggyu, fall back! Hold it!"

Unlike Kangyul's desperate plea, OnceNa took down Im Honggyu.

Now it was just Jaeyoung left.

'What do I do? Kangyul, tell me!'

Jaeyoung stayed hidden, frozen.

Rushing out now would mean instant death to OnceNa.

That was when it happened.

OnceNa appeared right in front of the tense, clueless Jaeyoung.

Jaeyoung's hand moved on instinct, tracing the headshot line from countless solo practices as he clicked the mouse.

The image of his character firing felt like slow motion.

He was that deeply locked in.

Bang!

"...Huh?"

Jaeyoung looked up at Kangyul as silence fell.

'Gasp!'

His clanmates were charging at him, arms wide.

Crash!

His chair toppled backward, burying him under the pile.

'Ugh! C-can't... breathe!'

Only then did the storm of cheers, claps, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠and roars flood his ears.

"We won!!"

"We freaking won!!"

"You did it, Jaeyoung hyung! You're the best!"

Even as he suffocated, Jaeyoung grinned wide at his clanmates' praise.