Chapter 8. Aftermath (3)
Chapter 8. Aftermath (3)
"Sigh.... Ga-hyeon-ah. What do I do?"
"You crazy bastard. Just do your work."
"And that's supposed to be a friend...."
"That's my line. And that's supposed to be a friend...."
After finishing dinner and their conversation, Su-han was driving, taking Ga-hyeon home.
"Ahhh! Fuuuuuck! I'm screwed. I don't want to work!"
"Says the guy who'll do a damn good job once he actually starts...."
"That's true...."
"You damn bastard."
That was it.
That guy was always like that.
A possessor of crazy talent.
Han Su-han, the genius of the millennium.
That was the nickname his friends around him had given him.
A crazy guy who, after suddenly deciding to study in his second year of high school, broke through the Seoul National University regular admissions in just two years.
That's not all.
Sports? He was good at sports. Singing? He was good at singing. A natural talent who showed insane ability in every field.
Yet, because of his wealthy family, he was a guy who hated to put in any effort.
It got to the point where former Chairman Han Gyeong-cheol and Madam Yoon Gyeong-suk had once consulted Ga-hyeon, wondering if he would do something if they cut off all support and kicked him out of the house.
He was the youngest, though, and had been raised so preciously that Su-han's parents eventually gave up.
"Take this opportunity to do it properly."
"...Should I start an agency? A streamer-exclusive agency. Like, build an MCN."
"If it were as easy as it sounds...."
"Let's do it... let's do it, yeah. I'll be the manager...."
"Yeah. Please, just do some work now."
"Good god. To think I was born into this family and have to work."
Ga-hyeon understood his feelings on one hand.
The prestigious Hansung Group.
A company that competes for the top spot among South Korea's major conglomerates, possesses numerous subsidiaries, and influences the Korean business world.
Born into such a place, would anyone want to work?
You could live for over three generations without doing a thing, right?
Of course, the children of such companies are taught the duty of running the business, but unfortunately, Su-han was the youngest and raised preciously, so he received less of that teaching compared to his older sisters.
In a word, he was spoiled.
"My dad told me to be at least half as much like you. He asked me what I'm doing when you work so hard despite being born into a wealthy family?"
"Yeah. What are you doing?"
"Fuuuuuck! I shouldn't have accepted your help back then!"
"Wow. Returning evil for good, are we?"
"I'm joking, I'm joking. I'm still grateful for what happened then."
If it weren't for that incident in elementary school, there probably wouldn't have been a connection with Su-han. Ga-hyeon recalled that event for a moment before changing the subject.
Before he knew it, Su-han's car had stopped in front of Ga-hyeon's house.
"Ah, we're here. I'll head in."
"Yeah. Get home safe. See you tomorrow."
And so, the two parted ways.
The next morning.
Like the saying "strike while the iron is hot," Su-han started his manager work from the morning.
Perhaps because he had experience running his own channel, 'Suhan Suhan,' he started building everything up from the basics to the minute details.
"First, the thumbnail. I'll make a channel banner too.... Link Ga-hyeon's Twinkle. Should I make a fan cafe too...? I'll have to ask about that on stream. Check the collaboration request emails and talk to Ga-hyeon about them.... Ah. Call Ik-su-nim.... Is he sleeping right now?"
Checking the time, it was 9:00 AM.
"Editors might be sleeping at this hour.... I'll just send a text."
Using the contact information he had received previously, Su-han sent a text to Ik-su.
[Ik-su-nim. By any chance, is the editing done?]
About two minutes later, he got a reply from Ik-su.
{Ah, yes! Su-han-nim. I touched up the video I edited during my application and finished it first.]
{1. Tutorial clear video. 2. Match with General Sallin. 3. Battle with Runans Abervich.]
{All three are done.]
[Oh. That's amazing. If you send them over, I'll review them and upload them.]
{I had already worked on them when I applied, so I finished quickly.]
{Ga-hyeon-nim is the amazing one. I watched the stream when I had time, too.]
{My heart was pounding at the thought of editing it....]
[Hahaha, I trust you, Ik-su-nim. Please take care of it.]
{Don't worry about it.]
[Oh, and I'll pick out a few highlights or editing points for you.]
[I think that would be easier for you. I'll ask Ga-hyeon and let you know.]
{Understood! I'm going to get some sleep.]
[Sleep well.]
After finishing the conversation, Su-han called Ga-hyeon, who would be awake by now.
"Hey. Did you go to the gym?"
[Yeah. Why?]
"Send me the time stamps of the scenes you thought were decent from your gameplay videos."
[Are you actually working? My god.]
"Shut up and just send them. I'm going to drain your salary."
[Tsk. I'm going to have to make a lot of money.]
"Come to think of it, how much in donations did you get? Did you check?"
[Uh... no?]
"There are tax issues too, so I'll look into a tax accountant."
[Do you know anyone?]
"I can just shake down my sisters."
[You have it so easy. Give them my regards. Tell them we'll meet up soon.]
"Gotcha."
Su-han thought about calling, but wondering if they were in a meeting, he sent a text instead. He debated between his eldest sister, Su-yeong, and his second sister, Su-jin, before sending it to Su-yeong.
[Noona, recommend me a tax accountant. For Nutube and streamer-related stuff.]
The reply didn't come for 10 minutes, then suddenly an alarm rang.
{Here.]
[Contact Info]
{I heard from Dad. Ga-hyeon is working in that field now, right.]
{Tell Ga-hyeon to contact me.]
{Why doesn't he contact me after waking up? It's disappointing.]
[Still haven't given up?]
{Shut up.]
[Hahahaha, the person who used to make such a fuss about liking Ga-hyeon when we were kids Hahahaha]
The ringtone went off immediately.
"Yeees~ This is Han Su-han speaking~"
[You son of a bitch.]
"Pfft! What. Aren't you in a meeting? Can I take this call?"
[It just ended. You bastard. How long ago was that, and you're still talking shit? You haven't told Ga-hyeon about that, have you?]
"I'll take it to my grave, Noonim."
[Good. Then that's fine.]
"Yeees, yeees. Understooooood~"
[Ugh, seriously. You're dead.]
"Should I tell Ga-hyeon?"
[Ah, damn it.]
"Alright, alright. I'll make sure to tell Ga-hyeon to contact you today."
[ ...Thanks.]
"Hang up."
Su-han hung up the phone and fiddled with his laptop keyboard, smirking.
"Pfft. Having one weakness on my sister is pretty reassuring."
Su-han thought of the grateful friend who had created this weakness. At that moment, someone came to mind from the stories of Ga-hyeon's time in Murim.
"...Come to think of it. I think Ga-hyeon said there was someone he liked in Murim. Was it Namgung Suyeon...?"
Su-han shrugged his shoulders.
"Well. No way. It's not like she's going to cross dimensions to come here, right?"
"Ah, yes, yes. Noona. Thank you. Would you like to have a meal this weekend?"
[Yes. Ga-hyeon-ah. I'll make a reservation.]
"I'm sorry I couldn't reach out. Let's see Su-jin noona and Su-han too!"
[Okay!]
Ga-hyeon hung up and finished the notes on the video Su-han had asked for.
"Alright... send this over."
Perhaps because he played it himself, the important scenes were surprisingly memorable.
Thanks to that, he was able to finish the notes marking the edit points quickly. Ga-hyeon sent the notes to Su-han.
"Ah, I'm bored."
The time was 1:00 PM.
It wasn't time for Su-han to come yet, and he thought even if he turned on the stream, it was daytime, so there wouldn't be much traffic.
"Should I practice swordplay?"
He remembered that there used to be a practice area inside the capsule where he could practice his swordsmanship skills. It was a game he played a few times when he was an athlete, but he quit soon after because he preferred swinging a real sword.
And he remembered that there was a sparring ranking system there.
"...Wait a minute."
Ga-hyeon's eyes lit up.
"I'm rank 1 right now. Can't I do it?"
The intuition of The World's Best was shouting that he could.
[Weapon Booster]
Surprisingly, this game was made by a Korean company, 'Mir-on.'
Perhaps because of that, although it was operated globally, most of the users of this Weapon Booster were Korean, and the top ranks were also filled with Koreans.
It was effectively the country's representative virtual reality practice area.
The game was used for physical training with various weapons, and gamers often used it for a light warm-up before playing other games.
"Hmm. It's been a while."
It brought back memories.
Ga-hyeon gently pressed the record button and switched the screen to show his face.
"Hello, Tusus. Today, I'm here as Yeom Ga-hyeon, not Sura. Ah, Yeom Ga-hyeon is my real name. Anyway, I suddenly thought of Weapon Booster before the stream, so I logged in."
Since he would be showing his real name as the nickname for this game anyway, Ga-hyeon revealed it.
"I played this very briefly in the past. I did it a few times, but I stopped because it was better to do it in real life. But now that I think about it.... I think it's possible now."
Sura smiled.
"This rank 1.... I think I can do it? So I'm going to try it."
Ga-hyeon imagined the sword and summoned it, grabbing the hilt.
It was the familiar sword he used in Murim.
A sword born after he told his convictions and aspirations to a blacksmith introduced by his master in the past, and the blacksmith said he would make a sword worthy of them.
It was the sword of The World's Best, who had vowed to eventually bring down even the heavens.
"Wow. It's been a while. Pacheon Sword."
Longing was etched in Sura's eyes. He held the sword with one hand and swung it lightly a few times.
"Ah. Someone said that? In the chat. Was it this tone?"
Ga-hyeon chuckled.
"Ah. It's time to return as The World's Best, Yeom Ga-hyeon."
He started the broadcast.
The method of Weapon Booster is unique.
An AI that copies the physical abilities of users in that ranking bracket appears.
Of course, the parent company's capital and technology were lacking to perfectly replicate it, but the evaluation from those who faced it was, 'It feels like the real thing,' and 'It's good for warming up.'
Perhaps that's why Weapon Booster was often used as a practice area.
Of course, since it was a Korean game, it was friendly to Korean users, which added to that.
Ga-hyeon naturally chose the overall ranking among the various weapon categories.
Since Ga-hyeon had no previous ranking record, he naturally had to go through placement, and the rules were simple.
First, you play five placement matches.
Then, depending on the match performance, the AI arbitrarily measures the score, sets a cutoff for all players' records, and determines the ranking.
And after that, it's simple.
You just fight a suitable opponent ranked right above you.
However, the more you win in a row, the higher the rank of the opponent you are matched with.
And the scoring system awards higher points for consecutive wins and overwhelming skill, raising your ranking.
As an aside, if you don't log in for a long time, your ranking drops slightly.
Sura started matching.
Checking the rank of the AI that appeared as an opponent, it was in the top 40%.
[Banana-meokgo-banhana]
That was the opponent's nickname.
"Alright. Let's do this."
Ga-hyeon grabbed the sword.
Since it was the first time, he decided to do his best.
And at the same time, he felt the sword held in his two hands.
'There is no boundary between me and the sword.'
The Unity of Sword and Body that he achieved in Murim was being realized in this virtual world.
The AI stepped in and lunged at Ga-hyeon.
A sword flying horizontally in a typical middle stance.
Ga-hyeon used one of the techniques taught to him by Han Ga-hwi. He looked at the opponent in front of him while momentarily perceiving the world in slow motion.
'...Hmm. No matter how I look at it, there's nothing to observe. Was that a bit excessive?'
Honestly, he thought it was a bit excessive, but what could he do since he had already used it?
In an instant, everything slowed down.
And he naturally deflected the opponent's sword, which was approaching slowly, by lifting it up.
The sword rose naturally, following Ga-hyeon's guidance.
Then, the torso was left wide open.
Pa-rak!
Blood splattered, and the opponent's torso was split.
"...Next."
The ranking up of The World's Best had begun.
The rankings of Weapon Booster do not change as you go to the higher tiers.
This is because the so-called hardcore veterans are overflowing as you go higher.
But now, a tectonic shift was occurring.
[First placement rank is top 18.4%!]
[Victory : Current top : 18.39%]
[Victory : Current top : 18.34%]
[Victory : Current top : 18.27%]
...
[Victory : Current top : 10.5%]
[Victory : Current top : 8.1%]
...
[Victory : Current top : 3.1%]
[Victory : Current top : 0.9%]
[Congratulations! You have entered the top 1% in the world!]
[From now on, your rank will be displayed at all times.]
[Current Rank : 108,137th]
There was no one to block his sword.
An unstoppable force.
He was undefeated until he reached the top 1% in the world.
Eventually, he reached the 1% stage.
However, Ga-hyeon didn't really feel anything special. Just like, oh, I see. That kind of feeling.
Rather, he was more focused on the fact that opponents worth fighting were finally appearing.
"Whew. It's tiring. Did it take about 2 hours?"
Checking the time, it was exactly 3 o'clock. Sura smirked at his intuition.
In the beginning, it ended with one strike, but as he went to the later stages, there were cases where he couldn't do that, and it took some time.
He barely used martial arts. He only used the Sura Sword Technique at crucial moments and barely used the rest.
"It's fun. I probably won't need to use up to the 3rd stage, right?"
Ga-hyeon nodded, thinking so.
But suddenly, a thought occurred to him. Was he being too ignorant and underestimating them?
If he was underestimating them, he was actually looking forward to it.
If such an opportunity were given, he would gladly accept it.
While he was at it, Ga-hyeon thought about the skills of the athletes from his past days as an athlete, which were the most comparable.
The athletes who appeared in the World Kendo Championships. And his brother. Finally, that person.
Ga-hyeon suddenly felt complicated thinking about that person.
"Akito Takahashi.... I wonder how he's doing."
The person who inflicted defeat on the legend of the Kendo world who only knew victory.
His brother couldn't overcome the frustration after his match with that person.
"Then, if I think about it with that person as a standard...."
Ga-hyeon pondered for a moment.
"It would be fun if I used the Sura Pacheon Sword Technique."
He probably wouldn't need to use Heaven and Earth (Cheonji) and Creation (Gaebyeok). And God-Killing (Shinsal).
Of course, you never know in a match. At that moment, a notification popped up in one corner of his vision.
[Su-han - Why are you playing games out of nowhere? I'm here. Open up, take this.]
Ga-hyeon turned off Weapon Booster and came out.
"Huh, wow. You hit the top 1%?"
"Yeah. I thought of it, so I tried it."
"I'm deeply moved. Is this really the weak Yeom Ga-hyeon? Well, with your skills now, you could probably hit world rank 1 in Weapon Booster. If you were going to do that, you should've turned on the stream."
"I was worried about what you'd say if I turned it on when you weren't here."
"True. Since there are some people now, I have to manage the stream in various ways."
Su-han took out the laptop he had left at Ga-hyeon's house and started setting up the stream.
"Let's turn on the stream in a bit. Everyone will enjoy Weapon Booster."
"We said we'd do a simple review stream before ending the last one.... Let's do that and then try it."
"Then do you want to announce it suddenly? I think the Tusus would like that."
"Okay."
The time was exactly 3 o'clock.
Ga-hyeon thought it was a bit early, but since it had come to this, he decided to just turn it on.
[Sura_'s Broadcast : Review of the last battle!]
- Oh, what's this. He's turning it on at this time.
- Wow! There's nothing better than a home-bound sheriff today!
- Ah, damn, I'm at work ㅠㅠ I'll have to watch the VOD later....
"Hello, everyone."
After entering the capsule and connecting to the virtual reality social space <Life>, Sura waved at the camera in the air in his space.
- Hi Sura-nim
- Haven't seen you in a few days. Did you rest well?
"Yes. I rested well. We're running the stream today."
- Woohoo!
- Gonna enjoy the Ancient Booklet.
[Viewer Count : 1,543]
The last viewer count was about 1,200.
The reason it increased like this even though it was daytime was because, in addition to the Wraiths of the Elder Book community and the Tusus, people from one more place had come.
- Is this Sura's stream?
- I'm very much looking forward to it. I want to see Sura's skills!
- Will we be able to see him cutting through a dragon's breath again today?
- Oh. Friend. I think that might be a bit difficult. If we saw it every day, it wouldn't be rare!
It was none other than the foreign Twinkle viewers.
Some of the Wraiths of the Elder Book had posted Ga-hyeon's story on the foreign community site 'Reddit,' and some users had followed the link to visit Sura's stream.
"Ah. Hello. Foreign viewers. I'm Sura. Today, there will be a simple communication stream about the last battle."
Sura speaks briefly in English.
At this moment, Sura was grateful for his father Taehwan's insistence on English education.
- lol. So it's a battle review!
- Oh. I'm looking forward to this too, in its own way!
"I'm lacking, but I'll speak in English too. So don't leave!"
- He is really kind :)
- Thanks Sura!
- I know Korean too, so I'll translate the sentences Sura misses!
Meanwhile, the Korean Tusus were surprised by Sura's English skills.
- Why is our Sura so good at English?
- ㅠㅠ Suddenly I feel a sense of distance....
- And in the meantime, his English pronunciation is kinda sexy lol
"My father told me to learn English properly. So I do it in a practical way. Now. That's enough about that. Let's get into the review."
Sura turned on the saved Ancient Booklet gameplay video and started watching it together.