Chapter 82: Meeting and Parting
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 82: Meeting and Parting
The atmosphere was electric as Seo-un’s teammates and Jin Long’s team crowded around him to celebrate their results. Other players soon flocked to the area as well.
As regular players, it was only natural for them to want to familiarize themselves with the face of a ranker who had achieved the Crown Rank. Though they had watched his exploits through the screens, everyone shared the same desire to see him in person. Most secretly hoped to strike up a conversation or, at the very least, exchange a brief greeting.
Suddenly, someone leaped over the gathering crowd, kicking off the air to land right next to Seo-un in the narrow space. It was a boy who, like Seo-un, had the Crown Rank emblem floating above his head.
“Nam Sa-gwang!”
Someone recognized him and scowled.
It was only natural for Juriel and Jin Long’s teammates to bristle with hostility. Except for Jin Long and Seo-un, every single one of them had been eliminated by Nam Sa-gwang. Had they not been in the waiting room, they might have forgotten the gap in their skills and attacked him in a fit of rage.
“Relax, everyone. It’s just a game, isn’t it? I was just enjoying the play according to the rules. Why get so worked up over something like that?”
He shrugged as he spoke, his expression showing that he truly held no lingering ill will. After glancing around at the players, Nam Sa-gwang turned his gaze toward Seo-un. Being shorter, he had to look up, but he spoke with a playful smirk.
“I lost this game, too. Thanks to you, I’m outside the top five again.”
“Your win streak is broken, so you won’t be getting those bonuses. My apologies,” Seo-un replied dryly, his face showing no hint of remorse.
Nam Sa-gwang’s smile deepened. “I’ve only participated in nine games so far, and there have only been three where I didn’t take Top 1. Coincidentally, you were the one who took me down in two of those.”
“Maybe we were mortal enemies in a past life. Judging by your conduct, you seem like the type to earn a lot of grudges.”
At the mention of his conduct, Nam Sa-gwang waved his hand dismissively with an exaggerated gesture.
“Hey now, what do you take me for? I don’t know if you’re familiar with our world, but believe it or not, I’m a man of the Righteous Faction.”
The ones surprised by those words weren’t Seo-un, but the other martial artists nearby. They had never heard of a master who looked like a mere boy being able to manifest Hand Aura. Every martial artist who had encountered Nam Sa-gwang assumed he was the successor of some secret sect or perhaps an old Demonic Fiend from a previous generation.
Sensing the players’ stares, Nam Sa-gwang waved them off.
“Of course, young runts like you wouldn’t know me. I’ve been in seclusion for over a hundred years. Maybe your parents might have heard stories about me? You’d have to bring your grandfathers here for us to even have a conversation.”
Jin Long’s expression hardened as he offered a formal fist-and-palm salute.
“I did not expect you to be such a high-ranking senior of the Gangho. However… are you truly a member of the Righteous Faction?”
His words were polite, but his expression openly questioned how a member of the Righteous Faction could behave so atrociously.
“I’ve heard that the disciples of that Old Man Yugok are particularly stiff-necked. Go ask your master; he’ll tell you about me. So, stop interrupting when an elder is speaking.”
Nam Sa-gwang was about to turn back to Seo-un when Seo-un spoke first.
“I’m curious too. Are you really from the Righteous Faction? Your behavior is quite different from the Righteous Faction members I know. Or is sexual assault considered a minor matter for the Righteous Faction in your world?”
“What?! Ravishing?! Who would do such a thing!”
Even though they were in the waiting room, his internal power surged, creating a terrifying pressure. However, the system suppressed it, making the air feel only slightly heavy without exerting actual physical force.
“No? That’s what it looked like to me.”
“Hmph! Don’t be ridiculous! I wouldn’t do something that disgusting no matter how many coins they offered.”
“There’s circumstantial evidence, but no physical proof.”
Nam Sa-gwang thumped his chest and glared at Seo-un. “Circumstantial evidence?”
“With your skills, why did you specifically target and beat down only the female players?”
At that, Nam Sa-gwang answered proudly.
“Because I enjoy hitting people—specifically women. But in my world, I couldn't do that because of my duty as a member of the Righteous Faction and my basic humanity. It wasn't easy suppressing that urge my entire life. I was taught that it is the way of the warrior to kill even the wicked women of the Demonic Faction with a single stroke of the blade.”
He was so unashamed that one might have almost nodded in understanding. Every martial artist present stood with their mouths agape, lost for words at his sheer audacity.
“Uh… so…”
Seo-un’s eyes wandered, searching for the right words, until they met Gi-chan’s.
“So, he’s a sadist?” Gi-chan asked.
Seo-un nodded.
“A pervert?! I am no such thing! It’s just that one of my desires is a bit unique.”
It seemed the concept of "sadism" didn't exist in his world, as the translation system had interpreted it as "pervert" for him. Seo-un didn't feel the need to explain.
“Whatever. So, why did you come to find me? Did you come to give me some cliché ‘just you wait’ speech?”
“Why would I? Holding grudges over things that happen in a game is a waste of emotional energy. What happens in the game stays in the game, and we can settle it in the next match.”
“Then what is it?”
“I want to join your regular quad.”
At those unexpected words, not only Seo-un but many other players glared at Nam Sa-gwang in shock. Juriel and Li Lingwei, in particular, shot him looks of pure contempt and each grabbed one of Seo-un’s arms tightly.
Seo-un, regardless of whether the two women were gripping his arms hard enough to break them, studied Nam Sa-gwang’s face to discern his true intentions. Having a master who could freely manifest Hand Aura join them would be like having a reliable bus driver. However, he couldn't simply accept someone he had only known as an enemy into his regular squad without knowing his motive.
“What’s your angle?”
To his blunt question came a blunt answer.
“Because of that guy.”
Following the direction of his finger, Seo-un looked at the list of rankers still floating in the center of the waiting room. Nam Sa-gwang was pointing at the name at the very top: Heavenly Demon.
“The Heavenly Demon?”
“That’s right. The Heavenly Demon.”
“What about him?”
“I have a grudge against him that can’t be settled even in death.”
“And?”
“I plan to crush him and end him, both in Cloyd and in reality.”
“What kind of grudge is it, exactly?”
“I’ll tell you that once you accept me into your regular quad.”
Seo-un glanced at Gi-chan and Jin Long for a moment. After exchanging looks with them, Seo-un shook his head.
“I need to discuss it with my teammates.”
“Then contact me when you’ve decided. It won’t be a bad deal for you. You should know that better than anyone.”
With that, Nam Sa-gwang kicked off the ground and vanished into the air, just as he had arrived. As soon as he disappeared, a notification rang out.
[The reward period will now begin. 10, 9, 8…]
“Junior Brother. Let’s stay in touch back in the real world.”
“Yes.”
As soon as he answered, the players who weren't in the same squad vanished like smoke. Once the crowd in the vast waiting room cleared, only the members of the same squad remained.
Only then did the mages and knights, who had been gathered separately on one side, enter Seo-un’s field of vision. Feeling his gaze, they approached him hesitantly, awkward smiles plastered on their faces. Among them was Kite, whose face was pale.
[Before the rewards, the player vote will begin. Please vote for the player you believe was the best in the squad.]
As the notification ended, the faces and names of the 19 players appeared. Everyone voted, and a moment later, the sound of celebratory firecrackers erupted.
[By a unanimous vote, excluding himself, Jin Seo-un has been chosen as the Honorary Player!]
[Next, please vote for the worst player. Please vote carefully. If a player receives a unanimous vote, they will be barred from participating in Cloyd Survival ever again. Those who receive many votes will face a penalty on the number of coins they receive.]
Seo-un tilted his head at the system he was seeing for the first time. There was also an option to abstain. Seo-un’s hand, which was about to move toward the abstain button, paused as his eyes fell on the name 'Kite.'
At that moment, Kite collapsed to his knees in front of Seo-un.
“Please, spare me just this once!”
Seo-un, who was unaware of Juriel’s earlier threat, looked at him in confusion. Gi-chan stepped up beside him and briefly explained the situation.
“I will endure all eighteen votes. I’ll take whatever coin penalty comes my way. Please, Jin Seo-un, just don’t vote for me. If you don’t… the Ronis family won’t have to get involved, and I can avoid being dropped.”
He must have racked his brain to come up with this plan after Juriel’s threat. He clung to Seo-un desperately.
He actually used his brain for once.
After hearing the full story from Gi-chan, it was clear that if Seo-un simply abstained, Kite wouldn't be dropped, and no one would have to face Juriel’s wrath in reality. Juriel stood by with a cold expression, glaring at the kneeling Kite, but she looked uncomfortable, as if the weight of her family name made it difficult to take back her words now.
Seo-un looked down at the man who was begging with his forehead pressed against the floor and smiled.
“If that’s the case, it’s only human to help you out.”
At those words, Kite looked up, a glimmer of hope appearing on his face. Seo-un moved his fingers and cast his vote.
Just as the figure of the hopeful Kite began to fade, Seo-un’s voice followed.
“But you were the one who abandoned human decency first.”
—N-No!!!
[Kite has been unanimously voted as the worst player. Kite’s right to access Cloyd Survival has been revoked.]
Watching Seo-un vote for Kite with a smile, the mages and knights found it hard to reconcile the image of the Seo-un they had seen in the game with the one standing before them now. Seo-un turned his cold gaze toward them; most had the relatively low Gold Wing rank displayed above their heads.
“I don’t know if we’ll be on the same team again, but people who engage in power struggles and divide the team when they should be working together will never move past that rank. In fact, you’ll be lucky if you aren't dropped entirely.”
At his chilling words, the mages and knights flinched. Among them, only the knight with the Black Shield lowered his head, and Seo-un’s assessment flew toward him as well.
“You have potential. You’ve put quite a bit of effort into learning your martial arts. If you keep it up, you’ll be able to achieve great results as long as you find a good team.”
Once his evaluation was over, the coin settlement began.
[You have obtained 240 reward coins.]
[You achieved the most kills in this game. Kill Bonus! An additional 100 coins are awarded.]
[You have placed in the Top 5 for four consecutive games. An additional 60 coins are awarded.]
[You have placed in the Top 1 for three consecutive games. An additional 60 coins are awarded.]
[You have achieved the feat of hunting an Epic Monster. An additional 30 coins are awarded.]
[You have set the record for the most kills in Cloyd. An additional 50 coins are awarded.]
[You have been selected as the Honorary Player. An additional 50 coins are awarded.]
590 coins, huh… The record for most kills in game history only gave 50. I guess they were stingy because of the title and the most-kill reward…
As he was organizing his thoughts, Gi-chan approached him.
“Hyung! How many did you get this time?!”
The attention of all the surrounding teammates focused on them. Most of the players were flushed with excitement, looking at the amount of coins they had received, which was in a range they had never seen before.
“590.”
Except for Gi-chan, everyone was stunned.
“Wow! I got 285 this time. Still, the bonuses for two consecutive Top 5 and Top 1 finishes started kicking in, so the reward was big compared to how I played.”
The shock was inevitable for the players who had only received 240 coins. Even though they knew he had achieved many feats, they hadn't imagined Seo-un would receive more than double the coins they did.
Juriel joined their conversation. “Is there such a thing as a consecutive bonus?”
“Yes. If you consistently place in the Top 5 or higher, it starts at 15 coins for the second consecutive time and doubles for each additional win. For Top 1, it starts at 30 coins from the second time and doubles from there.”
Even the well-informed Juriel nodded at this information. She was horrified by the rule that, in theory, could lead to rewards on a completely different level from the main rewards later on.
“I see now why you received the Crown Rank, Jin Seo-un.”
Juriel certainly had an eye for the game. Connecting the number of coins to Seo-un’s rank was something even the mages hadn't managed to do. Seo-un smiled and nodded.
“Yes. This game determines rank purely based on performance. There is no standard more accurate for evaluating a player’s performance than the total amount of coins they’ve acquired.”
“So… a Gold Wing rank means around 300 coins?”
“I suppose so.”
“Then how much would a ranker have?”
“Who knows?”
Seo-un smiled without giving an answer, and Juriel smiled back. As their conversation ended, another notification rang out.
[A draw ticket is given to the final 5 squads.]
[Player, you may spin three times.]
“This is…”
“A draw?”
The few players encountering the draw for the first time looked at the spinning wheel with dazed expressions. The rest of the players waited with glowing eyes and spun the wheels that had appeared in the hall.
A festive atmosphere began as some looked disappointed while others cheered. Then, it was Seo-un’s turn. After staring intently at one spot on the wheel, Seo-un gave it a powerful spin.
[Whirrrrrrr—Ding! You have obtained the Eight Trigrams Formation Manual. Congratulations.]
Now unfazed, he didn't even bat an eye as he spun the wheel again.
At least this one is worth 10 coins. Better than that 1-coin Askro's Necklace.
[Whirrrrrrr—Ding! You have obtained the Spirit Illusion Formation. Congratulations.]
When he obtained a formation manual worth 50 coins this time, a vein popped on Seo-un’s forehead. He gave the wheel one last, powerful spin.
[Whirrrrrrr—Ding! You have obtained the Immortal Spirit Pill. Congratulations.]
Checking the final draw, Seo-un clenched his fist and pumped it into the air. He had pulled the most expensive item, worth 120 coins, and the only one he had truly wanted.
[Immortal Spirit Pill: The core that forms the Nascent Soul, an inner dan of the Nascent Soul filled with Immortal Qi. An ancient elixir that allows a martial artist who has opened their Middle or Upper Dantian to make significant progress.]
It was the only item he had obtained after absorbing the Nascent Soul.
Once everyone’s draws were finished, the item list finally appeared. The teammates were all racking their brains, carefully selecting their items. Gi-chan was among them. Since he had been diligently making a list while distributing items, there were quite a few items for him, a mage, to choose from.
[Teammate Jin Seo-un has shared 50 coins with you.]
“Huh?”
At that moment, Seo-un quietly grabbed Gi-chan’s necklace, injected mana, and spoke.
“For the kills. Thanks for stepping back. And take this too; I don’t know if it’ll be useful.”
Seo-un turned his back so others couldn't see and held out a handful of something from his subspace. Gi-chan’s eyes widened as he took it.
“This is…”
“28 in total. I need 20 of them. Keep these eight; they might be exchangeable for coins.”
Taking the eight Red Coins, Gi-chan quickly tucked them into his subspace.
“Is it really okay for you to give me these?”
“The more you grow, the better my results will be.”
Gi-chan’s eyes sparkled with emotion, but Seo-un simply walked past him. After passing him, Seo-un quickly finished his item selection.
[You have selected: Fragmented Secret Manual, Fragmented Secret Manual, Kaiser's Ring, Carrera's Shirt, and Insight of the Mad Demon. A total of 240 coins and 20 special coins have been used. The remaining coins will be accumulated. Would you like to finish your item selection?]
Seo-un finished his selection and checked the items one by one.
[Fragmented Secret Manual: The second fragment. If you collect all 8 fragments, you will learn its true name.]
[Fragmented Secret Manual: The third fragment. If you collect all 8 fragments, you will learn its true name.]
That’s half of them now.
He had purchased two of the fragmented series for the first time using coins. Until now, he had obtained them through draws, but since he hadn't pulled any in the draws despite picking up two during this game, he invested his ample coins.
[Kaiser's Ring: Greatly increases Agility when equipped.]
Got a named ring, too.
He hadn't had much luck with named accessories since Toka's Ring, so picking up a ring that greatly increased Agility was a stroke of luck.
[Carrera's Shirt: A shirt made of mithril thread spun by an Iron Arachne that consumed mithril. It has high defense. Slightly increases Agility and Strength when equipped.]
The last item was a piece of equipment, but he chose it because even if he used it for a while and then sold it, its options would likely fetch a good price.
Seo-un, who had saved a whopping 385 coins, waited for a moment until everyone seemed to have finished their selections. Once the players finished choosing their items, Juriel and Li Lingwei approached Seo-un.
Juriel held out her hand, while Li Lingwei offered a fist-and-palm salute.
—Let’s meet again.
He looked back and forth at the two women, who had used different greetings but said the same thing. He shook Juriel’s hand and returned Li Lingwei’s salute.
“Yes. I’ll… be in touch.”
Li Lingwei briefly watched the two of them shaking hands with a sharp gaze, but Seo-un didn't notice. Before their greetings were even finished, a notification rang out.
[Well done. Good luck in your next game. You can retrieve your obtained items from your subspace.]
At the same time, his vision shifted, and he returned to reality.
The two men, back at the mountain training ground, looked at each other, their tattered clothes replaced by their original, intact outfits.
“Phew. That was a long game.”
In terms of game days, it wasn't particularly longer than his previous games, but it had felt exceptionally long.
“I was just watching from the waiting room halfway through… You worked hard. Thanks for the carry again.”
Seo-un playfully tapped Gi-chan on the shoulder as the latter bowed with his hands on his navel. Seo-un then stood up.
“Let’s head up for now. I want to get home and get some rest.”
“Yes. Shall we meet up and talk about the items after resting for a few days?”
“Sure.”
As they dashed down the mountain, Gi-chan took out a few secret manuals and magic books, turning them into dust as he learned them. The two men hopped onto their Hayabusas and headed home with a cool exhaust note.
After parting with Gi-chan and returning home, Seo-un collapsed onto his bed and fell into a deep sleep. He had almost no physical fatigue, but his mental exhaustion was significant.