Chapter 22
Chapter 22
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 22
Chapter Title: Showdown at the Training Grounds
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Player Training Grounds.
Unlike its simple and commonplace name, this facility directly operated by the nation was a hotspot frequented by everyone from average players to Diamond-grade elites.
The reason was simple: there was no better place to test the abilities you'd gained as a player.
The training ground boasted a toughness that even Diamond-grade players couldn't shatter, making it well worth the visit.
Of course, with its massive scale came hordes of players visiting every day—and today, Shin-hyeok made his appearance there.
"It's Choi Shin-hyeok..."
"He hasn't streamed in days, and it didn't seem like he was doing Dimension Arena either... but here he is at the training grounds."
"Something must've come up."
"Whatever it is, he's still the Super Rookie."
"Can't argue with that."
As if to prove there wasn't a single player in Korea who didn't know Shin-hyeok anymore, the ones already there filling the seats couldn't hide their surprise at his arrival.
The divine figure from the Placement Exam.
The Super Rookie who'd captured everyone's attention in just a single match.
If you didn't know him, you had no business being a player in Korea.
Stepping into the training ground amid countless stares, Shin-hyeok was greeted by the facility's master.
"Welcome, Player Choi Shin-hyeok."
"Good to see you, Master Oh."
The man boasting rippling muscles at a glance was Oh Sang-cheol.
A Diamond-grade active player and the head of the nationally managed training grounds, he was a state-affiliated player. Shin-hyeok bowed respectfully to him.
'Master Oh is one of the good ones.'
Sang-cheol was a martial artist player known as the "Iron Man," a Diamond-grade with exceptional skills and a hearty personality that earned him widespread respect.
Even after the Unified League diminished the status of Diamond-grades, his connections remained rock-solid.
Shin-hyeok himself had kept ties with him even after becoming a Challenger-grade player, which said it all.
As he chatted with Sang-cheol, reminiscing about old times—
"Choi Shin-hyeok!!!"
"...?"
A voice booming loud enough to shake the entire training ground made Shin-hyeok tilt his head and turn toward the source.
There stood a red-faced, heaving—
"Lee Joo-ho?"
Lee Joo-ho, the eldest son of the Oseong Guild Master and the one who'd been utterly crushed by Shin-hyeok during the Placement Exam.
Seeing Shin-hyeok look at him with curiosity, Joo-ho stormed over, still huffing.
"That's right—Lee Joo-ho, who's already hit Silver 2."
"Oh, already? Weren't you placed in Bronze 1? That's pretty quick."
Joo-ho had dropped out early from the Placement Exam thanks to Shin-hyeok.
Placed in Bronze 1 as a result, but leveraging his innate talents and ample resources, he'd rocketed to Silver 2. He made no effort to hide his smugness.
Only one sub-tier separated him from Shin-hyeok now, after all.
Especially since he'd chugged stat boosters like water right after entering Silver tier, maxing out his stats at Silver league limits. His confidence was sky-high.
"I challenge you to a spar."
"...A spar?"
"Yeah. We're the same Silver tier, so no issues there, right?"
"Fair enough."
Players at the training grounds often sparred to test each other's skills.
If tiers matched, it was almost always accepted; even with a tier gap, it happened if both agreed.
In that regard, a spar between Silver 1 Shin-hyeok and Silver 2 Joo-ho was no problem at all.
'That smug grin—he's clearly got something up his sleeve... but whatever.'
Shin-hyeok could tell from Joo-ho's smirking challenge that he was hiding something, but—
"Sure. Let's do it."
—he saw no reason to refuse.
No matter what the guy had prepared or hidden, Shin-hyeok simply had no doubt he'd win.
'He'll make a perfect guinea pig to test out my new gains.'
Joo-ho was strong enough to justify using things that'd be overkill on average players.
Heading to one of the training ground's sparring arenas for the match, Shin-hyeok glanced at the middle-aged man beside Joo-ho.
'Sword King Lee Ho-seok. Joo-ho's father and Oseong Guild Master. One of Korea's few world-class players.'
If Shin-hyeok was now a player no Korean had never heard of as the Super Rookie, Lee Ho-seok was known worldwide.
Two Emperors, Three Sovereigns, Five Kings.
One of the world's top ten strongest players and a member of the Five Kings, he'd held his prestige until Shin-hyeok rose unrivaled in his previous life.
'I wanted to spar with him originally... too bad that won't happen.'
A matchup against a top-tier Diamond-grade like him could've accelerated Shin-hyeok's growth.
Regretting that it wouldn't come to pass, Shin-hyeok stepped into the arena.
"Ready to lose?"
"It's just a spar—why the mental prep talk? Isn't that the challenger's line?"
"...Don't act so cocky over a mere one-sub-tier gap!"
Joo-ho, who'd climbed up first, glared down at Shin-hyeok with utter confidence.
Shin-hyeok remained unfazed by Joo-ho's assured swagger.
His gaze was still fixed not on Joo-ho, but on Ho-seok.
Whether he sensed it or not, Joo-ho spat his fury and pulled gear from his inventory, equipping it.
"Nice stuff you're wearing."
"Even a Gold-grade player couldn't beat me now. Not some hack who barely plays Dimension Arena!"
Even by the standards of Shin-hyeok—a former Challenger-grade with expert item appraisal—Joo-ho's gear was no joke.
Minimum Rare-grade.
And the weapon he wielded was a Unique+ rarity, rare even globally.
Shin-hyeok had one too, but that was thanks to world-class blacksmith Se-jin. Normal players couldn't touch Unique+ even after the Unified League launched.
'Base stats maxed at Silver limit: 100. Add in bonuses from all those Rare and Unique items, and he's pushing 200 total. Definitely strong.'
The power Joo-ho had built with all that was, as he claimed, overwhelming for low Gold-grades.
Total stats nearing 200.
Formidable attack and defense from top-tier Rare and Unique gear.
That was the source of his confidence.
In response, Shin-hyeok pulled his own gear from his inventory and equipped it.
"...That's it?"
"Yeah."
"Ha! Shinwa Group broke or something?"
Just the Armor of Absorption and Bang Se-jin's Well-Crafted Holy Sword.
Joo-ho didn't bother hiding his sneer at Shin-hyeok's sparse setup.
Even if the Armor was growing gear and the sword Unique+, it looked too barebones.
Shin-hyeok didn't care.
"Kkamak."
He simply summoned the pet he'd named Kkamak.
"Not bad."
Summoning Kkamak and checking its status window, Shin-hyeok didn't hide his satisfaction.
Stats were low and only one trait, but that was plenty.
As a Common-grade pet, low stats were expected, and Equipment Form was a trait Shin-hyeok knew well.
'It turns into gear with half its owner's stats, right?'
In other words, transforming Kkamak would yield gear with nearly +10 to all stats.
That alone made Kkamak hugely valuable.
"Equipment Form."
-Kak!
Shrrrrk!
Confirming that much, Shin-hyeok transformed Kkamak into gear.
Now a muffler or cloak of crow feathers, he equipped it and pointed his sword tip at Joo-ho in a relaxed stance.
"Ready. Come at me."
"...Fine. If you wanna lose in front of everyone that bad, I'll oblige!"
Fuming at the epitome of arrogance, Joo-ho charged.
His speed, boosted beyond limits by gear, was too fast to follow with the naked eye.
And that wasn't all.
'I've analyzed your battle footage to death. With Father's Sword King Style taught to me, there's no way I lose!'
During the days Shin-hyeok had been unconscious, Joo-ho had dissected his Dimension Arena videos.
He'd mapped every move Shin-hyeok made.
Shin-hyeok knew nothing about him, so it was an unfair fight—or so he thought.
But—
"Stats are just lubricant to move better and hit harder. In the end, only one thing matters: how well you wield what you've got. And in that regard... your Sword King Style is the worst, Joo-ho."
"...!"
That was merely Joo-ho's delusion.
Shin-hyeok knew Joo-ho inside out.
He even knew the Sword King Style at its root, from his father Ho-seok.
It was the result of Shin-hyeok's desperation to climb from the very bottom.
Thus, his blade effortlessly dismantled Joo-ho's Sword King Style in one strike, thrusting straight for his heart.
"Twisting Thrust."
Craaaack!
Choi Shin-hyeok Style, Chapter 1: Twisting Thrust pierced Joo-ho's heart dead-on.
"Gah! Ack!"
"Thank your rich daddy. Without that, you'd be dead."
Or rather, without the Unique-grade armor Joo-ho wore.
But the impact was unavoidable, leaving him doubled over, vomiting in agony.
Ignoring him, Shin-hyeok flashed a grin at Ho-seok, who stared with a stiff expression.
"Mind giving a lesson to a friend's father?"
"...You punk. Fine. I'll teach you proper—the gap between you and me."
From the moment Joo-ho appeared, Shin-hyeok's eyes had been on Ho-seok.
Joo-ho?
He was no longer worthy of being called an opponent.
Sensing Shin-hyeok's gaze, Ho-seok rolled up his suit sleeves and stepped into the arena.
The provocation had landed perfectly.