The World's Greatest Player
Ellen lay sprawled across the floor.
Having released Incredible, she had returned to her original size and was breathing hard.
“That was a good match.”
I offered my right hand. She glared at me with a sullen look.
“Good, my ass.”
She grumbled briefly but still took my hand.
“You know, Mr. Yu, I noticed you’ve been speaking pretty casually to me.”
Ah.
Our fists had touched and memories from before the regression came flooding back, so the informal tone had slipped out naturally.
There was no excuse I could offer now.
“If I’ve offended you, I apologize.”
“No need. I’ll speak casually too.”
Her answer was refreshingly straightforward.
Ellen flashed a bright, unreserved smile and squeezed our joined hands with real strength.
The rest of her team members couldn’t hide their feelings of futility or deprivation, but she was the exception.
“You. Let’s spar again sometime.”
Far from being discouraged, her eyes burned with fighting spirit.
Yes.
She was exactly like the Ellen in my memories.
The fact that her attitude hadn’t changed even after my regression brought a chuckle to my lips.
“Are you laughing at me?”
“No way. A challenge from America’s number one is always welcome.”
We looked at each other and burst into loud laughter.
As the laughter died down, William Rockefeller approached with a calm stride.
“Mr. Yu, your skill is truly remarkable. It’s hard to believe.”
“What’s your assessment?”
“I acknowledge it. Even if I scoured the entire world, there wouldn’t be a player superior to you.”
“Not ‘wouldn’t be.’ There isn’t one.”
I spoke with absolute certainty.
My rate of growth was so absurdly fast it was almost embarrassing to compare it to my previous life.
Armed with memories from my past life, I had claimed hidden pieces that would only be discovered far in the future, and far earlier than anyone else.
I had also obtained additional opportunities that weren’t part of the original plan.
Above all, acquiring the Rainbow Flashing Stone early had allowed me to step into the realm of transcendence.
In my previous life, I had only reached this level around 2040—fifteen years after first becoming a player.
Therefore,
I could declare it without hesitation.
“I am the world’s greatest player.”
“I acknowledge it.”
William Rockefeller nodded without argument.
So far, everything had gone according to plan.
The reason I had pushed myself while the Absolute Power Frame was still active was to display overwhelming strength.
This was the surest way to convince everyone that no player could defeat me.
“What do you think of the proposal I mentioned earlier?”
“Give me a moment.”
For the first time, William showed clear signs of hesitation.
It seemed the spar against the Golden Circle team had shocked him more than I expected.
I had never seen William Rockefeller at a loss for words in my previous life.
In my previous life, my relationship with William Rockefeller had not been good.
In fact, “terrible” would be more accurate.
We had only joined hands for survival after the age of destruction began.
Before the Tower eroded the world, he had been an even greater obstacle than Zhang Wufei.
He wasn’t the type whose values could be changed like Enrique or Ping Lei.
William Rockefeller was outstanding.
His business acumen, investment sense, and influence were powerful enough to control the entire world.
This was the assessment of someone who had competed against him several times in the previous life, so it could be trusted.
If I could properly utilize William Rockefeller’s abilities…
Don’t worry.
I have an excellent teaching aid named Ping Lei.
If you present the right answer according to a person’s disposition, you can change the future as much as you like.
“Do you truly believe the greatest player and a guild can coexist?”
“I believe it’s possible. But if Guild Master Rockefeller thinks otherwise, that’s fine too.”
“You may not know this, but there’s a saying in the underworld.”
“Keep your friends close and your enemies closer.”
The corners of William Rockefeller’s mouth drew a soft arc.
“I look forward to working with you.”
It was the second handshake since the greeting at John F. Kennedy Airport.
This gesture carried far deeper meaning.
Yeokcheon Guild Investment Proposal
1. The Rockefeller Foundation will invest $1,000,000,000 in the Yeokcheon Guild.
2. The Rockefeller Foundation will not interfere with the Yeokcheon Guild’s operations.
3. Ellen Taylor will be dispatched as an advisory committee member.
…….
Ten billion dollars.
Converted to Korean currency, the amount exceeded one trillion won.
It was an unimaginable sum that didn’t feel real in the present, though it might have in my previous life.
The amount was far too large to rebuke him by asking, “Are you trying to buy me with money?”
“An investment needs to be at least this much to be sincere. Please understand my true intentions.”
“I can’t hand over management rights, though.”
“Heh, all you need to do is maintain your position at the top of the world.”
“I’ll need a proper stage for that.”
“Don’t worry. I was already planning to announce the results of today’s spar externally.”
“Wouldn’t that be a loss for Gold Moon?”
“Heh. Think of it as taking one step back to advance two steps forward.”
I glanced at Ellen, but her expression remained unchanged.
It seemed they had already discussed everything.
William Rockefeller’s drive was tremendous.
He declared he would produce a documentary about my life, the Tower, and my gate conquests, airing it within a month.
He had already secured famous broadcasters, YouTubers, and various other figures for the project.
“…Did you anticipate something like this would happen?”
“Originally I had prepared an offer to elevate you to the pinnacle of the world.”
“So I was just a tool, then.”
“Don’t worry. The bar has simply been raised. The work you must do remains the same.”
I had completely devoured the plan William Rockefeller had prepared.
There was no downside.
In a rapidly changing world, directly taking the helm was wiser than riding the altered currents of history.
“Speak.”
“Leyden Co. And to make myself stronger, obviously.”
The more money, the better!
After the T-rex, there were still countless fossils I needed to collect.
Even one trillion won might not be enough to gather them all.
“Just thinking about spending money makes me happy.”
Easy money disappears easily.
I could relate to that saying completely.
“Should I source the items like last time?”
“That would be appreciated. But this time, fossils other than the T-rex.”
After the spar, Ellen had begun speaking to me casually.
The Golden Circle team members still looked quite displeased.
If they didn’t like it, they should get stronger themselves.
I left the fossil trading to Ellen and headed to the meeting location.
The Plaza Hotel.
It was the real-life setting of the movie that played endlessly every Christmas—Home Alone.
The restaurant exuded a luxurious atmosphere.
“William Rockefeller must have arranged it.”
To think he would rent out an entire famous film location and one of New York’s most prestigious hotels.
You really had to hand it to the Rockefeller Foundation for their spending power.
As I entered the restaurant, a woman rose from her seat with clear nervousness.
“I-it’s an honor to meet you. I’m Amelia Tesla, representative of Leyden Co.”
She shared the same surname as the famous company.
She was a descendant of Nikola Tesla, one of America’s great inventors.
“I’m Yu Jinho.”
Her black hair fell to her waist.
She was so short she barely reached 150 centimeters, and although she seemed to have made an effort, her suit was wrinkled from being worn for a long time.
A researcher’s style, completely divorced from fashion sense.
She looked slightly younger than in my previous life, but the difference wasn’t significant.
“Please, sit down.”
“Y-yes, th-thank you.”
Her voice trembled excessively.
I wondered just how nervous she must be to act like this.
Look at this goddess.
I’ve never heard anyone say I look intimidating before.
Where is this baseless incitement and fabrication coming from?
“U-um, I have a question.”
“Is it related to this investment?”
“Yes.”
When I nodded gently, Amelia swallowed nervously.
“Why are you investing in our company?”
“Because it has investment value.”
“L-Leyden Co. hasn’t produced any proper results yet. You might end up regretting it.”
Kkuk.
I swallowed a laugh.
Whether then or now, she was still so honest she could be called foolish.
“I found your thesis very impressive, Director.”
“M-my thesis?”
“Space Proof Theory. It was quite fascinating.”
It was the thesis written by Amelia Tesla, Leyden Co.’s representative, that had led the company to build a spatial movement network across the globe.
“The academic community treats it as heresy.”
“That can’t be right.”
“Because it can’t be proven. They ask how such a hypothesis is possible when we haven’t even defined mana yet.”
Her voice, which had been shaking from excessive tension, gradually grew firmer.
Once her field of interest came up, her attitude changed immediately.
“How about this?”
Shrink
The mysterious technique of folding space between points.
While still seated, I tapped my foot, and in an instant I had moved to a different table.
Amelia’s eyes widened like saucers.
“Th-that’s!!!”
“It’s a skill called Shrink.”
“It’s a completely different movement method from Blink. It’s just like the spatial movement network we’re researching!”
The spatial movement network was a technology that used wormholes to reduce the distance between two points to zero.
Well, Shrink belonged to a concept one level above that.
The fact that she had deduced so much from seeing the skill only once showed tremendous insight.
“There was almost no mana flow. No distortion effect like with Blink…”
Amelia stared fixedly at my legs with sparkling eyes.
Her eyes kept blinking rapidly.
Hmm, it was good that she had gained inspiration, but it was honestly a little scary.
I agreed.
If I left her like this, the conversation would never progress.
“I believe I can help with your research, Director.”
“Really!?”
“Yes. I happen to have a method that could assist in analyzing spatial movement theory…”
“That’s perfect! Absolutely perfect!!”
Amelia suddenly grabbed my hand.
This wasn’t what I had planned.
At first I had intended to win her favor through a contract with a constellation, just like I had done with Ping Lei.
A constellation related to spatial movement.
The god of messengers, travel, and thieves—Hermes.
Since he had granted her his blessing in my previous life as well, I thought I could gain both research progress and goodwill.
However.
To think that simply showing Shrink would elicit such a passionate reaction.
Indeed.
It seemed even going too smoothly could be a problem.
Her gaze, drenched in obsession, was so burdensome that I quickly turned my head away.