Chapter 121: And the Final Winner of Gladire Is...!
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 121: And the Final Winner of Gladire Is...!
Usually, the term "Corrupt Official" conjured images of someone fat, greedy, and generally unpleasant.
They were the quintessential villains of old folktales.
The spicy seasoning that always got thrashed by the good guys, serving only to make the protagonist look better.
That was exactly what a Corrupt Official was.
I thought it was a bad thing at first.
He had even worried if the skill would make him gain weight.
However, his perspective shifted the moment he began his private training.
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[Demonization - Corrupt Official]
A Corrupt Official refers to a government worker who is greedy and commits injustices as easily as breathing.
Furthermore, they always lose to the protagonists, serving as a stepping stone for their growth.
However, your Corrupt Official is different.
This is the Corrupt Official based on [Magistrate Byun], who defeated [Lee Mong-ryong] in the classic masterpiece [Chunhyangjeon].
This is a Corrupt Official to whom "Good Rewarded, Evil Punished" does not apply.
While in the [Demonization - Corrupt Official] state, your power is determined by your material possessions, such as wealth and women.
Even [Lee Mong-ryong] could not seize your wealth and power. Therefore, a Corrupt Official never lets anything be taken by others.
The jewelry worn on your body fascinates the opponent. It disrupts the reason of the fascinated target.
Enhances your held weapon into a Distorted Golden Pickaxe.
The weapon's hidden functions have not yet been activated.
You have touched the Seven Roots of Sin.
You are ???.
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Is it Mammon?
Between the weapon transforming into a pickaxe, the veins of gold flowing through his body, and the jewelry draped over him, the form was strikingly similar to the Mammon of myth.
The power in my body is overwhelming.
Even though he already possessed [Alpha Male], a skill at the pinnacle of physical enhancement, he could feel a significant boost.
Back in the [Chunhyangjeon] Gate, he had overwhelmed Kim Min-su with just basic Demonization.
But now, with an added attribute, he was having trouble even controlling the power.
The movement, transfer, and release of force.
It was a level of martial might that made these three basic steps difficult to execute properly.
This is too easy.
That was why, in the beginning, he hadn't tried to finish Lee Ji-jun quickly. Instead, he had focused on managing his power.
Why is he so weak?
The problem was that Lee Ji-jun was pathetic.
Even when Tae-yang intentionally jingled his jewelry and simplified his attack patterns, the man couldn't react properly.
Even the hardest bosses in games could eventually be beaten without taking a single hit once you figured out their patterns, but this guy didn't seem to have that kind of talent.
Extend a fist in one breath, hold the breath, and swing the pickaxe.
Lee Ji-jun was struggling immensely just to dodge these simple movements.
For someone who bragged about being an executive of Noble, his skills were remarkably lackluster.
I hope Max is a bit different.
The original plan was to suppress them quickly with full force.
However, Lee Ji-jun was so weak that Tae-yang was afraid he might actually kill him if he went all out, so he couldn't move freely.
Hoping Max would be better, he toyed with Lee Ji-jun for a while.
He slowly relaxed his body, waiting for the man to use his Steal skill.
"Hahaha! Now!"
Unaware that Tae-yang had lowered his guard, Lee Ji-jun looked ecstatic, as if he had finally adapted to the attacks.
From the smile of certain victory to the bold move of lunging in and reaching out his hand.
He's about to trigger it.
It was predictable, but Tae-yang decided to let him.
The outcome was already decided anyway.
"Steal, activate!"
Lee Ji-jun's face was positively radiant.
It was hard to believe this was the same man who had been wearing a tearful expression with swollen lips just moments ago.
[A Corrupt Official's wealth can never be stolen. Punish those who covet the Corrupt Official's riches!]
"Huh?"
Flustered, the man froze, seemingly forgetting he was even in a fight.
Slap!
"Gwaaaaagh!"
Since he was standing there looking so dazed, Tae-yang started by slapping him across the face.
As the man crashed into the ground, Tae-yang approached him with deliberate slowness.
He wanted the man to feel sufficient terror.
He wanted to make him imagine the coming violence until his head felt like it would explode.
"Don't come... don't come near me...! Stay away!"
As expected, the man was beautifully terrified.
By the time Tae-yang reached him, Lee Ji-jun was trembling like a leaf.
"Now then, since I'd like to hear more about this 'Steal' thing... you know the drill, right?"
It was time to open the floor for a serious discussion.
Even though Tae-yang only asked a few questions, Lee Ji-jun opened his mouth instantly.
His fear of being hit again was palpable.
The result:
"So, you don't even know who the other executives are?"
"T-That's right. Noble holds social parties and things like that, but the places where people hang out are strictly divided..."
"Your speech is getting a bit short, isn't it?"
"Hiek! I'm sorry! It's just that my mind and body are a bit weak right now..."
Lee Ji-jun politely spat out answers to every single question.
"Right, right. I understand."
"So, if I may continue..."
A few pieces of information about Noble were quite surprising.
The most unexpected part was that they weren't all that close to each other.
Tae-yang had assumed they were a tight-knit group of Innate Awakeners who cheered each other on.
Wiping them out in one go will be difficult.
His plan to catch everyone from the tail to the head at once vanished like smoke.
"...So, as you expected, only Max and I participated here... and the other executives are around that level. Even if you arrest them, there might not be much to find."
"Why?"
"That's... because even if there are executives, they don't all have the Steal skill. The reason Noble hasn't been caught despite being publicly known is that they don't technically commit illegal acts. There's a sense of 'it's fine as long as you don't get caught.' They're also very good at cutting off loose ends... so even if you catch the leadership, there won't be much evidence."
Lee Ji-jun's subsequent words were incredibly deflating.
I guess if the guy who stole the skill denies it to the end, that's that... and even if he doesn't deny it, there's no evidence.
Even if you knew they did something wrong, you couldn't catch them without clear physical evidence.
Since skills weren't something you could see with the naked eye, securing evidence was even more difficult.
Having a Steal skill user right here in front of him was only evidence of a crime against an individual.
It was a stretch to link that to the entire organization being a criminal den.
Still, just catching this guy is a big win.
Even if he couldn't link them all together, he could at least have him imprisoned for a certain period.
Conducting the investigation during that time would be up to Jang Du-cheol's capabilities.
"Yeah, you worked hard talking."
"Thank yo—"
Thwack!
"You can pass out now."
Tae-yang kicked Lee Ji-jun squarely in the jaw.
Now, it was time to beat up Max.
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Ah! The match has ended! The final winner of Gladire is Baek Tae-yang! The awards ceremony will begin shortly, so please exit the Gate and step up to the podium!
That was nothing.
Max was a more predictable character than expected.
The type of character who is full of passion and confidence, arrogant, beats up the protagonist, and gets even more cocky.
He was exactly at the level of a mid-boss's lackey.
The sound he made was pretty good, though.
He wasn't quite on Min-su's level, but the "hand-feel" when hitting him wasn't bad.
While he didn't reach Min-su's "pig-getting-slaughtered" squeal level, his "Gwooooooogh!" was quite magnificent to hear.
If he had set up some kind of veil like Lee Ji-jun, the broadcast wouldn't have picked it up.
But perhaps because he was solely focused on winning, he hadn't bothered with anything like that.
As a result, Max's pathetic squeals were broadcast vividly to the entire world.
I didn't even need to use Demonization...
Unlike Lee Ji-jun, Max Beramichi had a fatal flaw.
Unless he overcame that flaw, he would likely never be able to beat Tae-yang, no matter what.
To think he was a virgin...
[Alpha Male activated! You have an absolute advantage over virgins!]
Tae-yang swiped away the message window still floating in the air.
It was hilarious that a guy who acted so energetic and teased Min-su turned out to be no different from him.
Tae-yang wiped the smile off his face as best he could and walked out of the Gate.
Oh.
He had been annoyed at the thought of having to walk a long way to the podium, but Gladire had installed the awards platform right in front of the Gate exit.
It was the first time he actually liked something about Gladire.
"Player Baek Tae-yang! Congratulations on your victory. Could we get a few words on how you feel?"
He stepped onto the podium, received the trophy, put on the belt, and was surrounded by microphones.
A familiar situation.
A press conference he was bored of.
"First, I'd like to express my gratitude to the Hunter Association for allowing me to participate in this tournament, and to Victory Academy for giving me courage. Also, I witnessed the burning spirit and passion of my senior Hunters. I was lucky enough to win this time, but I believe it would be incredibly difficult if I were to take on this challenge again. It really made me appreciate the hard work of the senior Hunters once more."
"Then what was that comment about him being 'too weak' after you soundly thrashed Hunter Max Beramichi?"
"Ah, that was just a self-deprecating remark about my own weakness. How could I possibly say such a thing to Hunter Max?"
"Is it true that Cadet Kim Min-su, who participated with you, took several free condoms and accidentally spilled them all over the floor?"
"That is not true. If you're going to ask questions like that, I'll end the interview here."
"Get that guy!"
He was a pro at this now.
He lightly brushed off the event-like trolling from Min-su and reported the entire situation to Jang Du-cheol.
I just want to quit all this... and go back to the Academy.
He felt like he had spent too much energy on useless things.
He wanted to get back to the Academy quickly to woo Melanie and Ryu Hye-mi.
Jang Du-cheol will handle the rest.
And so, the eventful Gladire tournament came to a close.