Chapter 66: I Will Become the Strongest.
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 66: I Will Become the Strongest.
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Response to [I have a problem with my girlfriend] - Pure Love Diary Writer [Tae-yang Rank]
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I believe I am finally reaching the Truth and Reason of the Universe.
We had our doubts, but in the end, it seems we’re the only ones who will remain.
So, to get straight to the point: forget about your past flings.
It wasn't going to work out anyway. To be honest, well... I’m a bit like a relationship fortune teller...
I had to force myself to say nice things back then, but I already knew the outcome.
I wonder if you can understand how I felt, being unable to bless the present while knowing the future, lol.
Honestly, this was all part of my plan.
Besides, aren't there two new girlfriend candidates around you right now, Min-su?
They’re probably top-tier SSS-rank beauties... though they can't compare to my current girlfriend, lol. But they’re fine.
One of them is even making up excuses to see you by offering a "modeling" gig...
And that older girl who was your childhood friend... man, she’s a total Noona... hngh...
As for that Baek Tae-yang guy you mentioned about three hours ago? Honestly, just because he won a duel doesn't mean he's the real deal.
I mean... a guy who only fights in safe environments like sparring? You think he could beat Kim Min-su in a "Real-World Gate Combat" scenario??
Please, lol. As if!
Honestly, I think Baek Tae-yang’s achievements are highly exaggerated.
Maybe I should go clear an S-Class Gate solo just to put him in his place... Sigh...
Since it seems you still doubt me, Kim Min-su, I’ll write down the location where an S-Class Gate is about to appear.
Don't tell anyone. (Hey, you already told Kim Min-su? lol < It's fine, we're friends! Thwack!)
The location is……
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Gulp.
Kim Min-su finished reading the final post of a grand twelve-hour Q&A session.
He’s not wrong about anything.
He felt so guilty for doubting the Pure Love Diary Writer, even for a moment.
Honestly, Yu-min? He didn't even like her that much.
It was just a mix of learned emotions, expressions, and the resentment toward the world he had bottled up.
Those things had combined to make him wail in the middle of the street; it was never because of something as low-class as romantic feelings.
Even now, while he sat here worrying, people were dying in Gates and Dungeons all over the world.
And a Hero becomes a laughingstock on the internet over a mere 'girl'?
"That’s just ridiculous."
They say when a beat-up car leaves, a new one arrives.
Indeed, after Yu-min left, Melanie and Ryu Hye-mi began contacting him aggressively.
Melanie was the most surprising; despite acting like she didn't care, she was constantly demanding replies whenever she had the chance.
[Melanie]
< Kim Min-su, contact me right now.
< Where are you?
< You haven't forgotten our contract, have you?
< Kim Min-su!!! Why are you reading my messages and not replying?
< If you keep acting like this, we’ll have no choice but to file for damages.
< Do we really have to be like this as fellow cadets?
Cute.
To think she’d follow up her aggressive modeling offer with such bold, frequent messages.
Is this the thrill of leaving someone on read? Is this what life is like for Baek Tae-yang every day?
Kim Min-su felt as though he had finally ascended to the status of an Alpha Male.
He tried to look at himself objectively several times, but no matter how he organized his thoughts, he was definitely an Alpha Male.
Was Melanie just any ordinary woman?
She was the daughter of Kaivan, the leading corporation in Hunter weapon manufacturing.
That was Melanie.
"If a woman like that is begging for my attention, what am I if not an Alpha Male?"
Oops.
He had spoken out loud unconsciously.
The Pure Love Diary Writer had told him it was better to cut back on that.
Shaking his head a couple of times, he corrected his posture and stood before a tree.
Five seconds to go.
"Baek Tae-yang, just you wait."
He must have enjoyed life so far, with everything going exactly as he wanted.
But that ends now.
"Once I clear an S-Class Gate solo, all eyes will be on me."
The Pure Love Diary Writer had told him to keep everything about this Gate a secret.
However, Kim Min-su didn't take those words literally.
He’s telling me to bring people along so I can skyrocket to fame all at once.
He was certain the Author just couldn't say it outright.
This thought connected directly to the anxiety Kim Min-su harbored.
He was worried that when he emerged from clearing the S-Class Gate alone, there would be no one around to see it.
Ding! Ding!
[Melanie]
< Cadet Kim Min-su. Contact me immediately.
< This is your last warning.
Melanie was the daughter of a major corporation.
That meant her information network and connections were as wide and deep as they come.
I’ll have to use you.
An Alpha Male who picks and chooses women only when he wants them.
Just like Baek Tae-yang.
[Melanie]
Cute.
< Cadet Kim Min-su, stop talking nonsense and pick up the phone.
(GPS Address)
The bold decisiveness to use even a woman who liked him for the sake of reaching higher heights.
Kim Min-su shuddered at the ruthlessness of his own actions.
It can't be helped.
To reach the top, one must be willing to manipulate even the hearts of others.
With eyes full of resolve, Kim Min-su moved toward the Gate.
I will become the strongest.
It was the firm vow of a Hero.
+++++++++++++++++++++++
—So, do you know what he said to me? Out of nowhere, he calls me "cute." It was so absurd that we’ve officially decided to sue for damages. I mean, how can he just send a random address and disappear on the very day of the photoshoot? And when I checked, it turned out to be the site of an S-Class Gate!
"Hah..."
Kim Min-su, who had been holed up in his room for a while.
Honestly, I was worried he might become a shut-in or stop coming to school because of the shock.
No matter how much I run around and struggle, Kim Min-su is the center of every event.
But if Kim Min-su doesn't show up?
There was a possibility that no matter what development occurred next, things wouldn't proceed properly.
So, I was relieved at first when I heard Min-su was entering a Gate.
Of course, that was before I heard it was an S-Class Gate...
After breezing through the last S-Class Gate, I had started to doubt the difficulty levels.
Because of that, I had spent my time at home searching for articles on difficulty analysis.
Don Quixote was a very unique case, even among Concept-type Gates.
Based on interviews from the Don Quixote Gate, various analytical posts had flooded the internet.
While they were full of different perspectives and subjective opinions, they all agreed on one thing.
It was a hybrid of a Boss-type and a Concept-type Gate, and in terms of actual difficulty, it was closer to a B-Class.
The sheer number of windmill giants, flocks of sheep, and the mage.
The consensus was that it would have been impossible for a small group to handle all of them without taking damage if the difficulty was truly S-Class.
It was a case where, by an extremely slim margin of probability, the difficulty was labeled high, but the actual content fell short.
Some argued it was rated S-Class simply because the rewards were S-Class.
Reading those posts, I found myself nodding along.
There was no way Kim Min-su could have cleared an S-Class Gate so early on.
The same went for me.
The Gate clearance had been so clean it lacked any sense of tension.
I had taken the highest contribution points and the first-place reward without a single major scratch.
But that result was only possible because the Gate was designed for Kim Min-su.
"So, how far has the situation progressed? Is a team being formed?"
—Nothing is confirmed yet. Honestly, we’re all just as flustered as you are...
It hadn't even been five minutes since he entered the Gate.
Normally, a rescue team would be assembled and an Opener would arrive on-site within that short window.
Logically, the right move was to request a rescue immediately to get Kim Min-su out.
However, in Melanie's case, she couldn't do that.
—I’m so worried they’ll tear our company apart...
Kaivan’s image had already been heavily damaged by the "Min-su's Scream" meme.
While their reputation was tanking, their chosen corporate model, Kim Min-su, had attempted a solo S-Class Gate?
This was a narrative that would stick, whether they wanted it to or not.
‘Kaivan exploited Kim Min-su to save their image.’
The moment that single sentence spread across the internet, Kaivan would lose everything.
The truth didn't matter.
Public opinion is a double-edged sword; people believe what they want to believe.
That was why Melanie wanted to handle this as quietly as possible.
If she asked 1st-Grade Hunters, rumors would spread instantly, but if she didn't, it was too dangerous.
Therefore, she needed someone with the skills of a 1st-Grade Hunter who could handle it discreetly.
And that would be me.
A cadet who was treated like a pro Hunter and had earned the highest contribution in an S-Class Gate.
Someone who was easy to contact and trustworthy.
—It’s only you, Baek Tae-yang. I know I’m asking too much. But please... our internal investigation suggests that since it’s a Concept-type Gate, the actual difficulty might not be that high... just like last time...
Desperation seeped into her voice, replacing the previous anger.
I stepped out of the bathroom, drying my hair with a towel.
This wasn't a matter of possibility or choice.
"I'll go. Just send me the address."
I felt bad for Su-jin, but I had no choice.
We still had our Wonderland date planned, so it should be fine.
"I'm okay. Go ahead, Tae-yang."
Su-jin had already laid out my clothes neatly on the bed.
It felt strange, like seeing a devoted wife quietly supporting her husband as he left for work.
"I'll be back."
I gave Su-jin a quick kiss and opened the window.
[Rocinante activated! Please drive safely!]
As soon as I jumped out the window, Rocinante was summoned beneath me.
Vroom, vroom!
The moment the wheels touched the ground, I leaped over the wall without a single wobble.
Min-su, you really are zero help in life.
Actually, this was better.
It meant I didn't have to feel even a shred of pity for him.
Melanie should at least have the heart to treat Kim Min-su with some basic human decency...
She needed to treat him well enough for him to delude himself into thinking she liked him.
But if he keeps acting like this, won't she eventually just end up loathing him?
Why is the protagonist such a loser?
I let out a sigh, feeling as though dark clouds were already gathering over the future of the story's romance.