Episode 109: Recruiting Rankers. ‘Climbing the Tower of Trials’ (2)
The first person to emerge from the car caught everyone’s attention.
Her golden hair fell to her waist, and her blue eyes sparkled.
She resembled a goddess descending from the myths.
“Wow…”
“Gulp.”
The appearance of the girl, who retained both innocence and beauty, evoked a sense of awe.
The pupils of the reporters dilated.
It was inevitable.
“Ah, the Saintess of Amsterdam!”
“My goodness…”
“Did a European ranker make a surprise visit to Korea?”
Her recognition was incomparable to the players from the Zhonghua Guild.
Theresa, one of the ‘Top 100 Players’, had come to Korea.
“Why have you come here?”
“Do you have any acquaintances in Korea?”
The reporters bombarded her with questions.
Theresa looked around, embarrassed, before answering cautiously.
“Ah… umm. I came to see Player Kang Jinhyuk. I heard he was here.”
Her sudden visit was newsworthy on its own, but the reason behind it was to meet Jinhyuk.
This couldn’t be ignored.
It was a scoop.
“Just for that, you came all the way from Europe to Korea?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
“You must have had a tough flight. If I may ask, what is your relationship with Player Kang Jinhyuk?”
Theresa hesitated at the sensitive question.
After a moment of contemplation and a complex expression, she said,
“A friend who needs to be trusted, no matter the situation…”
She smiled faintly as she replied.
It was no lie, no pretense or exaggeration.
Theresa truly trusted and relied on Jinhyuk completely.
Meanwhile, reporters were also surrounding a sturdy-looking elderly man.
An individual who shouldn’t be here, someone who some speculated might already be dead—a martial artist.
It was Yu Cheonyeong.
“Were you not bedridden with a terminal illness?”
“Do you also know Player Kang Jinhyuk? Please, just a word from you!”
The excitement was immense.
Even the reporters who had been hanging around the Zhonghua Guild players for any bit of news had now all gathered here.
Hong Deokpyo looked as if he’d shoved a handful of dirt into his mouth, but no one around him seemed to care.
Frankly, at this point, not even if Hong Deokpyo got hit by a car or dropped his pants would the reporters spare him a glance.
“Player Kang Jinhyuk saved the life of this old man. I owe him a debt that I can never repay in a lifetime.”
Yu Cheonyeong finally spoke.
Korea’s strongest, or rather one of the most renowned martial artists in the world before the Tower of Trials appeared, had mentioned Jinhyuk’s name.
The incurable ‘mana explosion syndrome’.
Yet, Jinhyuk had cured that supposedly untreatable disease.
Again, a huge stir arose.
“Who exactly is Player Kang Jinhyuk?”
“He’s not just good at combat, he has expertise in medicine too?”
“They say he’ll make it into the new ‘Top 100 Ranking’ this month. Now it seems that’s an understatement.”
“Is the ‘Top 100’ even the issue? There’s no one else more prominent than Player Kang Jinhyuk now. The achievements he has amassed simply make him incomparable.”
As Koreans, it wasn’t just a matter of pride. It was an objective fact known by the reporters, who had refrained from commenting officially.
Lastly, another group of reporters crowded around the third individual who had gotten out of the car—the man in a black suit that suited him so well, yet with an icy image.
Sword Saint, Cheon Yuseong.
“I have a question for you. I’ve heard you turned down offers from every guild in Korea. Why did you answer Player Kang Jinhyuk’s call?”
Indeed.
Cheon Yuseong, who climbed the tower solo, had cleared dungeons and mazes with overwhelming prowess.
Many guilds had extended offers to him with blank checks, but Cheon Yuseong never replied.
He ignored them as if their very existence meant nothing.
But now this impregnable figure had come for Jinhyuk.
“Are you colleagues with Player Kang Jinhyuk?”
Nothing else seemed to explain it.
However, to the word ‘colleagues’, Cheon Yuseong’s eyebrows twitched dramatically.
A sharp killing intent burst forth from his body.
The reporters staggered backward, startled.
“Not colleagues.”
A firm denial.
What followed was a mixture of love and hatred.
“He is a goal that must be brought down.”
The target of his climbing and his reason for training—Jinhyuk represented a mountain that continues to stir Cheon Yuseong’s fighting spirit.
And.
Jinhyuk was observing all of this from a slight distance.
‘Hmm.’
Not bad.
Indeed, nothing compares to the spectacle when major leads gather.
If he wanted to, he could call on even more allies.
But that would likely lead to every raid team in Korea mobilizing against them.
The thought of roads and buildings turning into a sea of flames… well, that wouldn’t be a very cheerful memory.
＊＊＊
“How could this…”
Shaking uncontrollably, Hong Deokpyo stuttered with a flushed face.
The stage he had prepared to triumph over his opponents—
Why had everything gone exactly the opposite of his expectations?
The press corps he had called upon had only heightened Kang Jinhyuk’s brand value.
The Zhonghua Guild became a laughingstock, overshadowed by his impressive connections.
A worst-case scenario selected from all possible outcomes.
The rest of the Zhonghua Guild players were just as flustered.
“This guy… he’s more incredible than I thought.”
“Theresa, Yu Cheonyeong… and even Cheon Yuseong, who’s known to be unrecruitable, have gathered.”
“…”
In front of these three, even the name ‘Zhonghua’ paled significantly.
Even at the S-level, they wouldn’t stand a chance.
At least, if they had known the scale would be this grand, they would have brought a higher-ranked player.
‘No.’
The leader shook his head silently.
“Unless Namgung Chun himself came, this atmosphere cannot be changed.”
They had hoped to boost the guild’s image, and as a bonus, sap a substantial amount of coins and items from the Heuk-Woon Guild.
But all plans dissolved into nothingness because of one man.
“It was quite an entertaining event.”
Jinhyuk shrugged his shoulders towards the four of them.
School connections, regional connections, blood connections.
It’s undeniable that these three factors are important in Korea.
However,
“If you’re going to boast about connections, well… you have to have this much, right?”
There are levels even to that, after all.
＊＊＊
The storm passed.
A fully disheartened Hong Deokpyo gave up appearing on the program.
The Zhonghua Guild players who came with him also exited the stage.
Well, that was wise.
If they appeared on TV now, they’d be less useful than the tissues on the table.
‘Why do I find it so amusing to see the pride of a conceited man get crushed?’
Maybe this is why one shouldn’t become stagnant.
Becoming accustomed to seeking malicious stimulation, the body becomes desensitized to ordinary thrills.
Right then,
“What’s so funny that you’re grinning like that?”
Cheon Yuseong, who had been watching from the side, clicked his tongue disdainfully.
“Huh?”
“Forget it. It’s obvious. You were enjoying watching that Hong whatever-his-name is, fail miserably, right?”
As always, nothing stops that man from speaking his mind.
From his brain to his mouth—it’s a direct connection.
“I appreciate you coming all this way. But I’d rather you didn’t poke into my personal hobbies.”
“Tell me not to poke? Considering you turned my office-tel into rubble, I think I have every right to give you more grief.”
“Office-tel, as in the place you live?”
Piecing it together, Jinhyuk quickly realized the situation.
Oh, right.
Now that he mentioned it, Yu Cheonyeong had been revealed as an Unknown on the 5th floor.
He had completely forgotten as it was someone else’s concern.
Cough—!
Perhaps pricked by conscience, Jinhyuk hastily cleared his throat.
“I was the only one who believed in you, even if no one else did. The Martial Arts Association is nothing to the great Sword Saint. Yeah, absolutely.”
“Every time I see you again, I’m convinced that I’ll never get used to your smugness.”
“I’ll take that as a compliment. By the way, how was it?”
“What are you referring to?”
“The guy from the Martial Arts Association. They must’ve been desperate to send him this time. How difficult was he?”
A slight pause from Cheon Yuseong.
He might’ve recalled that moment as his expression turned somber.
“His name was Gawain.”
Hmm.
That name belonged to one of the Knights of the Round Table, a high-ranking officer of the Martial Arts Association.
“So, it was quite bothersome to deal with?”
“Yes, he was.”
The opponent was strong. Frustratingly so.
But,
“It was just that.”
Cheon Yuseong looked at Jinhyuk with a strange gaze.
Though the intruder who broke into his office-tel was a formidable monster… why did it feel like, compared to Jinhyuk, that monster wasn’t as intimidating?
At the very least, there wasn’t that sense of despair that no matter what he did, no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t surpass it.
That’s why Cheon Yuseong was confident.
‘Indeed… there’s no one stronger than this cunning jerk.’
No matter how backed by guild support, whether it’s a ranked player or a boss monster that defies the tower’s norms… none would be a match for this fossil that has not just aged but rotted.
So,
‘I’ll defeat you one day and take the top spot.’
Though he had faced defeat 138 times, it’s said that the true victor is the one who laughs last.
Cheon Yuseong nurtured his deluded dreams of victory.
Their conversation came to an end there.
Next, Jinhyuk exchanged pleasantries with Theresa and Yu Cheonyeong.
“It’s okay. When you broadcasted the ruins expedition, I promised to appear with you, Jinhyuk.”
“Ha ha. Same here. I wanted to bring all my disciples, but you vehemently opposed the idea, so I refrained.”
They were all kind people who had come to this place without complaint at the mere word from Jinhyuk.
Indeed.
This must be the reason why you should always treat precious people well.
They could be helpful anytime in the future, not just on this occasion.
At that moment,
“We’re ready on the set whenever you are.”
At Kim Dawoon’s call, Jinhyuk stood up.
It was about time to head out.
＊＊＊
The broadcast began.
But,
‘What in the world is this?’
‘We’re doomed, completely doomed!’
Choi Heejae and Kim Dawoon, the program’s directors, were wiping the cold sweat off their foreheads repeatedly.
They had no choice but to.
They had invited a formidable ranker, only for the broadcast content to veer off course.
“Umm… Player Kang Jinhyuk? Could you tell us how you cleared the maze?”
“Well, it’s nothing special. Just eat a lot of tasteless moss and mushrooms and keep a calf entertained.”
“That’s it?”
“Yes.”
Jinhyuk nodded his head innocently.
The female host tried to steer the conversation, but to no avail, as the answers to her questions came back the same.
“The third floor dungeon…”
“Just avoid it all.”
“And the fourth floor?”
“Avoid that too.”
“The fifth floor?”
“Work a bit harder at avoiding.”
Seriously.
Was that not a legitimate tip?
The Tower of Trials can only be conquered through complete dedication. Jinhyuk divulged the only strategy there was.
