Chapter 166: Promotion Exam (5)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 166: Promotion Exam (5)
I’m having a lot of strange experiences today.
I look around at the surroundings, which are filled with abandoned buildings.
All of this is a virtual space created by a skill? The settings created in the actual game really defy imagination.
Right now, we are here as mere spiritual bodies in a virtual space created by an Awakened.
...To be honest, the concept of a 'spiritual body'—ghosts and whatnot—didn't exist in my previous world, so it feels awkward.
I can't distinguish this from reality at all.
It’s a setting the developers probably threw in while high, thinking, 'Hey, this looks fun, let's add it! Hahaha!'
At least they had enough sanity left to worry about balance-breaking issues. They added a condition that these new settings, like Baek Seo-yeon’s Hive Mind, can't be forced on others. That’s a relief.
It would have been terrifying if the Hive Mind or this virtual world had a compulsory element.
Baek Seo-yeon would have become the ruler of the world. If she wanted to assassinate someone, she could just drag them into the virtual world and then—stab, squelch—finish off their defenseless physical body.
I should look into and analyze the things I just glossed over while playing the game.
Who knows? I might find another cheat-level element like Rahiya's Elixir.
Anyway, let's focus on the exam for now.
In this test, we take turns being the party leader and fighting against an opposing team.
Though, that 'opposing team' consists of B-rank heroes.
I meet the eyes of the heroes staring at us with confident gazes from a distance, then turn my head toward my two teammates.
"I'm going to use the Hive Mind. Everyone, share your vision with me."
"Understood."
"That was really dizzying before. Are you going to be okay?"
Baek Seo-yeon nods calmly, while Eom Soo-hyun looks worried.
The link is established, and the visual fields of Baek Seo-yeon and Eom Soo-hyun flood into my mind.
Whoa—the sheer amount of information is no joke.
The biggest problem is that they don't move according to my will, so their perspectives shift randomly. It makes me feel like I’m going to puke.
"Soo-hyun Nuna, you'll be the main attacker. Baek Seo-yeon Nuna and I will..."
"Seo-yeon."
"Right. Seo-yeon Nuna will take the front and keep the B-rank heroes occupied."
Since I’ve seen her use a sword, I’m not worried about her being on the front lines.
After deciding on some simple hand signals, we engage the B-rank heroes.
Seeing me rush in with a gun in one hand and a sword in the other, the B-rank heroes smile and raise their weapons.
My stats barely met the requirements for B-rank, so a direct head-on confrontation was out of the question.
Baek Seo-yeon moves forward, toughly pushing back the B-rank heroes, while I scramble around the perimeter, providing cover fire.
Walls sprout or flames erupt wherever my bullets strike, threatening the heroes.
The damage is weak, but I’m not using them for offense anyway.
As magic spells pour out to obscure their vision and hinder their movements, the heroes dodge gracefully and shout.
"Whoa! This is more than I expected!"
"I see why you've been making waves."
They’re still relaxed.
Since this is just a test of skill, the heroes aren't fighting as if their lives depend on it.
One of them whistles as she kicks through a stone wall blocking her view, then swings her sword at me.
As I lower my stance to deflect it, the hero laughs and presses down on the sword she was swinging sideways.
"I've already seen that move."
Oh, really? Then have you seen this?
As the hero puts weight into pressing her sword down, I drop into a crouch and kick the spine of my own blade to supplement my lack of strength.
The recoil causes the hero's sword to lift ever so slightly, but she immediately applies force to strike down again.
Before her blade can connect, I twist my sword upward, pointing the tip toward the sky and shoving her blade aside.
Startled by my sudden transition to an offensive stance, the hero jerks her head back to avoid the tip. In that opening, I roll away from her descending blade and retreat.
"Wow... I almost got caught there."
"Rolling around on the ground like that... it's like modern dance! Whoa!"
The hero, who had been leisurely evaluating my movements while facing off against Baek Seo-yeon, hurriedly ducks to dodge Eom Soo-hyun’s magic.
"They're sharp. At this rate, we might actually lose. Let's take him out first."
"I'll go."
Where do you think you're going? I fire a barrage at the hero targeting Eom Soo-hyun, pinning her down.
The hero, who tried to break away, is instead met with a barrage of fire, water, stones, tentacles, wind, and smoke. She is forced back by Eom Soo-hyun’s magic.
"They really are top prospects."
Clicking their tongues, the heroes begin to fight with a bit more sincerity.
As the battle progresses, the heroes ramp up their skill level, but we continue to fight them to a standstill, dragging the battle out.
"The exam is now over."
At the supervisor's words, the heroes lower their weapons and praise us.
"You're amazing. I can see why people are hyping you up. But man, meeting you as an enemy is seriously annoying."
A pretty-looking hero taps my shoulder and compliments me.
The other heroes also praise Eom Soo-hyun and Baek Seo-yeon, and the exam ends in a friendly atmosphere.
In the second round, Eom Soo-hyun took the lead against a different set of heroes and performed her command duties brilliantly.
It’s not like the B-rank heroes were going all out to kill us, and everyone gathered here has experience as a leader, so it wasn't difficult.
At this level, the other members of Black Unicorn shouldn't have any problems either.
Come to think of it, except for Kwon Ye-jin, everyone in Black Unicorn was originally a party leader.
Anna was a leader all the way until she approached B-rank, and Yoon A-young and Lee Yu-na also led parties before joining Black Unicorn.
Does that mean Kwon Ye-jin can't command? Not a chance.
She’s been by my side from the start, executing high-level tactics, and she’s gained leadership experience in lower-rank dungeons.
She might seem anxious on the surface, but she performs well in the field. She’ll pass a test of this level easily.
Now, all that's left is the skill verification and the psychological evaluation, which aren't really 'exams.'
The psychological evaluation doesn't mean much.
It’s just a formality; you pass as long as you give the morally 'correct' answers.
Just as I was wondering how my physical body was doing back in reality, the heroes Baek Seo-yeon has to face enter the area.
"... ..."
What is that?
The B-rank heroes who walked in had a completely different temperament from the ones we had faced so far.
No matter how much of an exam it is, they can't always bring in top-tier B-rank heroes who should be out in the field. Thus, the heroes helping with the exam usually aren't that much stronger than us.
Or so I had thought until now, but these people are different.
They aren't quite A-rank, but they are definitely on another level compared to the previous heroes.
And what’s with that atmosphere?
Their eyes are filled with enough bloodlust to suggest they intend to kill us.
"I think those people hate us."
Eom Soo-hyun whispers to me stealthily.
"It's because of me."
As we stand there watching the heroes, Baek Seo-yeon speaks in a low voice.
"Did you do something to get on the Association's bad side?"
When Eom Soo-hyun asks, Baek Seo-yeon gives a bitter smile.
Oho. It’s not the time to be impressed, but seeing a smile on her usually doll-like, expressionless face is quite charming.
"Do you know about 'The Hero'?"
"Wouldn't it be weirder if someone didn't know them?"
They were a world-famous villain group; it would be strange not to know them.
At Eom Soo-hyun’s answer, Baek Seo-yeon nods and speaks.
"My older brother is one of the executives of The Hero."
"...Uh... B-but, Hero Baek Seo-yeon, you're not part of The Hero."
"No, I'm not. But it's also a fact that my brother is part of them."
Hmm... that's tricky.
Discriminating against someone because they have a villain in the family isn't right.
But an organization's perspective is different.
The larger the group, the more they try to preemptively prevent any potential risks.
It’s not just a simple acquaintance; it’s a blood relation. The organization can't help but be concerned.
No, wait. If that's the case, they shouldn't have given her the hero qualification in the first place.
Isn't it a bit petty to let her dream as if they're being generous, only to sabotage her in the middle?
"Are they doing something this low just because of that? To make you fail the promotion exam?"
"Probably... or rather, it's likely because there are too many people who have been harmed by my brother."
So it’s not the Association itself, but rather an executive who was victimized by The Hero intentionally interfering.
"That was your brother's doing. It wasn't you, Hero Baek Seo-yeon. This is unfair."
Eom Soo-hyun speaks the truth and looks ready to march over to the supervisor to protest.
However, Baek Seo-yeon hurriedly stops her.
"Please, don't."
"Why? Why should you be the one to suffer? This isn't how a fair Association should act."
"My brother is Baek Seo-woo."
Baek Seo-yeon closes her eyes tight and speaks in a trembling voice, as if she didn't want to say the name.
Baek Seo-woo.
That squinty-eyed bastard who came to recruit me into The Hero.
Since Lee Ru-da told me to be careful, I had looked up information on him. I didn't even have to look hard; there were countless articles on the internet.
The number of people he has killed totals around 20,000.
He didn't kill them all with his own hands, but if you estimate the casualties from the terror attacks caused by his orders, it reaches that staggering number of 20,000.
He’s blown up crowded concert halls and sports stadiums, occupied skyscrapers, and eventually brought them down.
The death toll alone is 20,000; if you include the injured, the number would likely increase tenfold.
Among the executives of The Hero, Baek Seo-woo was one of the most active and was classified as a top-tier threat globally.
It’s terrifying just imagining what would have happened if I had defied him back then.
Just hearing that Baek Seo-woo had visited the clan, Lee Ru-da had evacuated all the clan members and conducted a full sweep of the building.
It’s horrifying that the brother of such a nightmare villain—someone even Lee Ru-da guarded against with experts checking for bombs, poisons, magic, and curses—is her brother.
What kind of looks has she had to endure throughout her life?
Even having a common criminal in the family makes people live in fear of judgment, but to be the family of a terrorist who killed tens of thousands...
I can't even begin to fathom the immense pain she must have suffered.
Seeing us frozen at the mention of Baek Seo-woo's name, Baek Seo-yeon averts her gaze.
She’s probably afraid of receiving those looks of contempt again.
A shadow falls over Baek Seo-yeon’s face, which had seemed so devoid of expression.
"Those people... their families or friends were likely victims of my brother..."
Unable to even meet the eyes of the heroes glaring at her with murderous intent, Baek Seo-yeon speaks desolately.
"So?"
In the midst of the heavy silence, Eom Soo-hyun speaks up, sounding angry.
"What does that matter? It's not like Hero Baek Seo-yeon was the one who committed the terrorism!"
"But the families of those sacrificed by my brother..."
"Then they should take it up with that brother! Why are they taking it out on you instead of Baek Seo-woo?!"
Eom Soo-hyun is right, but it’s hard to make such rational judgments when you're the family or friend of a victim.
Sigh—this is complicated.
Eom Soo-hyun, speaking out in anger, raises her staff and points it at the heroes, shouting.
"Direct your anger at Baek Seo-woo! Why are you doing this to the innocent Baek Seo-yeon?! How is what you're doing any different from a villain?! This is nothing but venting!"
The heroes do not answer.
They simply continue to glare silently at Baek Seo-yeon.
"Man, this is a pain."
As I stretch my neck, Baek Seo-yeon flinches.
Eom Soo-hyun, who had been shouting at the heroes, looks at me with surprised eyes.
Receiving their gazes, I shrug my shoulders.
"Let's just win. If we win, that's the end of it, right?"
"Yeon-woo."
Eom Soo-hyun calls my name with a touched expression, and Baek Seo-yeon lifts her head, her eyes wide.
Soo-hyun is right.
I don't fail to understand their feelings, but this is just petty venting.
If they were powerless civilians, I’d understand them pouring their resentment onto Baek Seo-yeon.
But these people are heroes. They should be using that anger and their abilities to take down Baek Seo-woo, not to torment Baek Seo-yeon.
"We'll fight them exactly how they want. And then, we'll just win."