Chapter 6
Chapter 6
Chapter 6: Another Connection (1)
Translation: godtl
Huu.
A wisp of smoke escapes from parched lips.
The middle-aged man stubs his cigarette in the ashtray and mutters under his breath.
"Four of you teamed up... and still lost......"
Just the raspy voice of a longtime smoker.
An utterly ordinary middle-aged man's voice.
Yet the four standing before him remain frozen like mice before a cat.
"Hey, Kang Ho-yeong."
"Yes, Vice Guild Master."
"Do you think that makes any damn sense?"
The middle-aged man referred to as Vice Guild Master shakes the documents before him with visible irritation.
"Not beaten by hyenas, not outplayed by another team. You lost a head-on fight to some guy with no gear?"
Four against one.
Against a single Magic Class player?
The Vice Guild Master's face is etched with disbelief.
"...I have no excuses, sir."
"Ha!"
The Vice Guild Master tosses the documents onto the desk and drags a hand down his face.
"Let me make one thing clear—I don't blame you for losing a fair fight. That's something even money can't always fix."
"......"
"But here's the thing."
Rising from his seat, the Vice Guild Master steps directly in front of Kang Ho-yeong.
The other team members flinch and bow their heads.
Then—
Smack!
The sound of flesh striking flesh as Kang Ho-yeong's head snaps sideways.
"What I can't forgive—is failing despite having a team!"
The Vice Guild Master glares at Kang Ho-yeong with murderous eyes.
"Teaming is fundamentally an act that sacrifices reputation. Do you understand what that means?!"
"Since word inevitably spreads... the longer it continues, the more damage we sustain across multiple fronts."
Dungeons and raids requiring cooperation were prime examples.
What happens when you get matched with players who've directly suffered from your trolling in cooperative modes?
It becomes pure karmic retribution.
"Yet our Scorpion Guild permits it. Why?"
"Because the benefits of success far outweigh the penalties of failure."
"Exactly."
The Vice Guild Master punctuates each word by prodding Kang Ho-yeong's forehead.
"That. Is. The. Only. Reason. We. Allow. It. So tell me—what did you accomplish?"
His gaze sweeps across Kang Ho-yeong and the other three.
"Eliminated from the Arena! Failed the Tutorial! And now you're stuck with every damn penalty imaginable!"
No one dares respond to his growling.
How could they?
The Tutorial Kang Ho-yeong's team matched into had top-tier MMR for Level 1.
Naturally, it would've included recruits from Korea's elite guilds.
Which meant their names on the Arena Board would be scrutinized.
Within a day, everyone would know the four-man team were Scorpion Guild recruits.
"Our guild contract has a clause protecting any playstyle within the Arena."
"...Provided we deliver results, sir."
"Good, you remember. Makes me wonder how someone so sharp could fuck up this badly."
The Vice Guild Master pulls out another document and thrusts it forward.
Kang Ho-yeong's pupils constrict at the sight.
"T-this is...?"
"An invoice. For recruits who squander the guild's full support and become nothing but liabilities—without even clearing the Tutorial."
He tosses copies to the other three.
"It states you'll transfer all rewards earned over the next decade to the Scorpion Guild. Sign it."
"Um..."
The tank, Kim Jae-won, cautiously raises a hand while reading.
"What... happens if... we don't sign...?"
Perhaps deeming the question unworthy of answer—
The Vice Guild Master's right arm blurs.
Simultaneously—
"Ghk—! Kkh—!"
Kim Jae-won gasps as he's lifted into the air by his throat.
To a Ranker like the Vice Guild Master, hoisting a Level 1 by the neck requires no effort at all.
"If you're stupid, your body suffers. Do you really want to know?"
Watching that scene, Kang Ho-yeong and his party silently signed the documents.
"Hmm. This is hard to believe."
At the bespectacled man's words, the small-statured man bowed his head even lower. The other two people standing nearby did the same.
The bespectacled man hurriedly waved his hand.
"Ah, I'm not blaming any of you. It's just... this story is too unbelievable."
At those words, the small-statured man who had been bowing his head—Kim Min-hyeong—finally spoke up.
"I feel the same way. It was shocking enough that he could spam magic without any casting, but to think he got 15 kills..."
"And he did it all alone. Wiped out four top-ranked teamers in one go."
"That's right! I had the Arena Board open and checked the updates in real time!"
Nodding at the tutorial participants' accounts, the bespectacled man said,
"Understood. We'll handle the details through the report, so you're all free to go now."
"But..."
"I know what you want to say. Don't worry. Our Seongsam Guild doesn't penalize people just for failing the tutorial."
The bespectacled man shrugged his shoulders.
"You can always do better next time, right?"
"Ah! Yes!"
Kim Min-hyeong and the other two visibly brightened. The participants bowed respectfully before leaving the room.
As the door closed, the bespectacled man skimmed through the report.
"Single-handedly took down a team of four, huh..."
He glanced at the female employee standing quietly in the back.
"Yeon-hui, did you find anything?"
"Manager Park, this is a workplace."
"Well if I call you Assistant Manager Woo, you'll get all huffy."
At those words, the woman standing in the back—Woo Yeon-hui—developed a small vein on her forehead.
"I don't get huffy."
Thud.
Woo Yeon-hui forcefully slammed some documents onto the table.
In response:
"Tch, you're totally huffy..."
"What was that, sir?"
"Ah, nothing, Assistant Manager Woo."
Muttering under his breath, Park Min-cheol hurriedly checked the documents she'd placed down.
"As expected, the team was from the Scorpion Guild?"
"Yes. And it was three B-rank Traits and one A-rank Trait."
"Wow! That's an all-star party. If this were a movie, we're talking Hollywood-level here."
Manager Park Min-cheol didn't hide his admiration.
Currently, Seongsam's most promising recruit this season was just Kim Min-hyeong with his B-rank Trait. Yet here was a team with three members comparable to him plus one A-rank Trait.
Of course, higher trait grades didn't automatically mean better—in actual combat, there would be differences beyond just grades.
But if these four had managed a combined 20 kills, they must have had considerable combat skills too.
'How on earth did the notoriously ill-mannered Scorpion Guild gather such talent?'
But before that question could fully form, an even bigger one arose.
"How the hell did someone wipe out a team of that caliber all by himself?"
"He's Magic Class, isn't he? Probably overwhelmed them with sheer firepower."
"A level 1 with that much firepower? Even if possible, it would've required substantial casting time."
"The report says he manifested magic just by flicking his fingers, so it must be due to his Trait, right? At least S-rank or higher."
"That's one way to look at it. But I have a different theory, Assistant Manager Woo."
Though Woo Yeon-hui was a skilled fighter in the Platinum-rank,
Park Min-cheol, a Diamond-rank player, knew better.
"No matter how good the Trait, there are limits at level 1. There's something more to this."
"...Are you suggesting something like a Constellation?"
"Exactly, a Constellation. That caliber of variable would explain everything."
If he'd received their selection—granted only to a chosen few—then even this absurd outcome would make sense.
Those chosen by Constellations had all turned the impossible into reality.
But even this was ultimately just speculation.
"Manager, he's just a level 1 who completed the tutorial. There's no way he could have a Constellation's patronage."
Since the Galaxy Arena's emergence in 2015,
Constellations had only ever appeared for Diamond-rank and above—never once for any rank below.
Park Min-cheol, who knew that fact all too well, let out a hearty laugh.
"Then he must be an irregular. Or perhaps there's something else at play besides a Constellation. Well! Whatever the case may be."
Park Min-cheol's gaze turned toward the tutorial report.
"One thing's certain—he's someone we absolutely must recruit."
"The other guilds won't just sit idly by either."
"Which is why Assistant Manager Woo will have to work a little harder for us."
Having said that, Park Min-cheol adjusted his glasses and looked toward the wall.
"Wouldn't you agree, Guild Master?"
At that moment, the wall rippled slightly before—
"Even if this is company property, there are only two of us here. Just call me 'miss' like usual."
A woman who appeared to be in her early twenties materialized.
Park Min-cheol shrugged his shoulders.
"If I do that, you'll just tease me mercilessly."
"My, my. If anyone heard you, they'd think I'm some immature brat throwing my weight around to bully employees."
"And isn't that the case?"
"Manager Park!"
Woo Yeon-hui gasped in surprise.
But Park Min-cheol paid her no mind, his gaze fixed intently on the woman who had suddenly appeared.
"Our Manager Park seems to be laboring under some misunderstanding."
The woman smiled sweetly, perfectly matching her innocent appearance.
"I've never once thrown my weight around. I simply......"
She glanced briefly at Woo Yeon-hui behind her before continuing.
"...have occasionally reminded Manager Park that our group's regulations strictly prohibit workplace romance, that's all."
Park Min-cheol immediately buried his face in his hands.
"Haah... Aren't you just saying the same thing in different words?"
"Giggle! They're clearly different things!"
The woman laughed brightly before asking:
"But since when did you notice me? This is an A-grade stealth artifact we're talking about."
"I didn't at first. It was when we started discussing Player Kim Si-mun—I suddenly sensed a presence."
If the woman's body momentarily stiffened, it must have been an illusion.
Given his Diamond-rank status,
the usual Park Min-cheol would have noticed such a subtle change.
But unfortunately, with the workplace romance ban hanging over his head, he didn't have that level of composure to spare.
Park Min-cheol loosened his tie with a sigh.
"So what brings you to this... questionable infiltration attempt?"
"Questionable? I just wanted to see Manager Park. That hurts my feelings, you know?"
"That's exactly what makes it questionable. I'm a taken man, you know."
"Ma-manager Park!"
At this, Woo Yeon-hui gave Park Min-cheol's shoulder a light punch.
Though her cheeks had turned slightly pink, of course.
Park Min-cheol cleared his throat awkwardly to diffuse the tension.
"Ahem! Anyway, what brings you here? Aren't you in your final semester now?"
"I was bored. The academy doesn't mean much to me anyway."
"Well, that may be true but..."
"Even with the world changing like this, just because some old fogey insists I must~ graduate college, I'm the only one suffering here."
"Miss Yu-jeong!"
Worried someone might overhear,
Park Min-cheol waved his hands frantically.
"It's fine. Grandpa already knows I talk behind his back anyway."
"Haah... If you're really that bored, why not go run some Arena matches instead?"
"I just came from one. Didn't you watch my stream?"
"Ah, my apologies. We had some unexpected reports come in, so I couldn't check."
"No need to apologize."
The woman shrugged.
Lee Yu-jeong twisted a lock of her long hair as she eyed the report on the desk.
Then—
"Is this it? The report that shocked our dear Manager Park?"
In an instant, she snatched it up.
"Mi-Miss Yu-jeong!"
Caught off guard, Park Min-cheol hastily reached for the report.
"You can't do that! That's guild confidential information!"
"What's the big deal? The guild belongs to me anyway."
With practiced ease, Lee Yu-jeong deftly avoided Park Min-cheol's grasping hands.
Perhaps because both were top-tier players,
Swish! Swish!
Their movements resembled a scene straight out of an action movie.
Yet throughout it all—
"Huh...?"
Lee Yu-jeong's eyes never left the report.
She kept checking and rechecking one name in particular: 'Kim Si-mun.'
The first thing Si-mun encountered upon returning to reality was a series of message windows.
[You have acquired additional experience points as the 1st place reward from the Tutorial.]
[The bound trait 'Philosopher's Stone' has received a portion of the distributed experience.]
[Your level has increased by 2.]
[The Philosopher's Stone's level has increased by 1.]
Si-mun calmly scanned through the messages.
"Roughly speaking, I would've reached around level 3 if I didn't have the Philosopher's Stone."
Though the difference was significant, Si-mun felt not a hint of regret.
Why?
'Because the lower my level and the higher the Philosopher's Stone's level, the more advantageous I'll be in the Arena.'
It was simple common sense.
Even if everyone else was at the same level 3,
What if I alone possessed another separate level?
That would be an even greater advantage than innate stats.
"Shall I check it out?"
With a pleased heart, Si-mun opened his Status Window.
[Status Window]
Title: Pioneer of Alchemy (and 2 others)
Class: Magic
Level: 3
Affiliation: South Korea
Strength: 4
Agility: 4
Stamina: 5
Transmutation Power: 11
Remaining Stat Points: 2
Traits - Philosopher's Stone (F)
Achievement Points - 12,300
Si-mun then opened the Titles tab and checked the effects of his growth-type title, 'Pioneer of Alchemy.'
'The title remains unchanged.'
[Grants a minor bonus to all transmutation-related actions.]
The description was exactly the same as before.
'Well, Mal-suk did say it was tough leveling up titles too.'
The image of Go Mal-suk cursing the sluggish growth rate of titles flashed through his mind.
With a faint chuckle, Si-mun's gaze shifted to his newly acquired title.
Then, his brow slightly furrowed.
[Ruler of the Tutorial]
One who achieved overwhelming results and claimed 1st place in the Tutorial.
The Galaxy Arena favors promising talents.
"What the—no other effects?"
No matter how many times he checked, there were no additional bonuses attached.
Si-mun clicked his tongue in mild disappointment.
"Well, this is the standard form of titles, after all."
It wasn't for nothing that titles were undervalued in his past life either.
If anything, it was strange that he had obtained a growth-type title right from the start.
Still, he couldn't call it a loss.
'The more titles I collect, the higher the tier of the Achievement Shop will rise.'
The Achievement Shop, which only opened from Gold-rank onward, required the collection of such titles to purchase stats.
Finally, Si-mun turned his attention to his remaining 2 stat points.
'For now, would investing all remaining points into Transmutation Power be ideal?'
Even if they were Imitations, he was transmuting Mythic-grade equipment.
So, if his Transmutation Power increased, either the required Achievement Points would decrease,
or the Imitation's completion rate would likely improve.
'The Philosopher's Stone is broken, sure, but it doesn't solve the fundamental principle of alchemy—Equivalent Exchange.'
Wasn't the immediate demand for Achievement Points proof of that?
To resolve this, he needed higher Transmutation Power.
After all, Transmutation Power was his unique stat, specialized for transmutation.
Naturally, the higher it was,
the more it would enhance everything from Equivalent Exchange to his overall alchemical abilities.
'Ah, this is frustrating...'
From a purely alchemical standpoint, dumping everything into Transmutation Power was clearly the answer.
'But I can't neglect my physical stats either.'
Si-mun knew this well.
Most competent Magic Class players never neglected physical training.
Of course, they didn't invest their remaining stat points into Strength, Agility, or Stamina—
they sought to raise them solely through training.
The reason was simple.
'From the official Arena onward, real lives are on the line. If you want to survive, you'll do whatever it takes.'
In fact, such stat training often determined whether a Magic Class player could break into the Ranker tier.
That was how crucial Strength, Agility, and Stamina were to Magic Class players.
And Si-mun was already in the low-level range, where each stat point made a noticeable difference—making the dilemma even more vexing.
'First, I should at least meet the awakening average of 5 in each and then work on stats separately...'
Then—
"Wait."
Arms crossed,
Si-mun, who had been brooding over his remaining stat points, suddenly widened his eyes.
'Do I really have to rely solely on training to raise my stats?'
The Emerald Tablet he had obtained in his past life—
It didn't contain only the recipes for the Elixir and the Philosopher's Stone.
Back then, he had been too obsessed with recovering from his Mana Disability to pay attention, but—
"Philosopher's Stone, let me ask you one thing."
Not anymore.
"You can transmute anything as long as Equivalent Exchange is possible, right?"
Hmm.
A pleasant chime resonated from the center of his chest.
But—
"Then... is human transmutation possible too?"
At Si-mun's follow-up question, the chime abruptly cut off.