In a large mansion in Tokyo, Japan.
“How annoying.”
Ito Shizuru furrowed her brows at the changes in the world caused by Seong Jihan.
‘If only my Gift rank went up too…’
Shizuru’s Gift was the SSS-rank ‘Edit’.
It had originally started at S-rank, but she had barely reached SSS after using countless Akashic Pages.
Seeing how Supporting Gifts were getting mass upgrades, she had hoped that maybe her gift would go up another rank from SSS, but…
There were no signs of its rank going up.
Instead, people’s attention was focused on the previously looked down upon Supporting Gifts, shaking up the supply chain of Akashic Pages.
‘Until now, I could purchase Akashic Pages while evading regulations by offering more money…’
To keep Shizuru in check, the Korean government worked with various entities to block SZ Corporation’s purchases of Akashic Pages, but…
This countermeasure didn’t work everywhere in the world.
Being on the opposite side of the planet, they didn’t care if Shizuru brainwashed others, they were fine as long as more money was offered.
While expenditures had increased compared to normal, the supply chain of the Akashic Pages itself had been maintained.
But…
‘Now that the use of Supporting Gifts has been discovered and demand for them has increased, the price of the Akashic pages will skyrocket too.’
While it was still affordable for now, if the price of Akashic Pages rose any higher, even the illustrious Ito Shizuru wouldn’t be able to handle it.
She could only hope the revealed uses of Supporting Gifts wouldn’t be too significant.
Shizuru observed the market situation.
At that time…
[Everyone~ My ‘Nurturing’ gift has reached SS-rank~]
A video uploaded by the Daegi Guild Master known to be Seong Jihan’s girlfriend became the latest trending video on BattleTube.
‘That girl had Nurturing gift!?’ While he may be Seong Jihan, she didn’t think he would just randomly make some girlfriend the Guild Master of his guild. She had no idea that girl possessed the Nurturing supporting Gift.
If I had known, I would’ve brainwashed her when infiltrating Daegi Guild!
Shizuru clicked the video with regret and…
[Hello everyone~ I’m Daegi Guild Master Lee Hayeon. Since the might and strength of Supporting Gifts have been revealed, I want to give you some tips~]
Hearing she would give tips made Shizuru feel uneasy.
-Did the Guild Master have a Level SS Supporting Gift? Wow.
-Yeah, it always seemed odd that he made his girlfriend the guild master, haha.
-If her Supporting Gift is SS-grade, doesn’t that mean it was originally S-grade?
[Ah! My nurturing gift was A-rank earlier, but thanks to my boyfriend… I mean Boss using Akashic Pages, It went up to S-rank!]
-Wow, so the Akashic Page enhances Supporting Gifts?
-Isn’t the Akashic Page worth 300 billion won? Our guild must be loaded, lol.
-No, recently it went up even more, someone bought it for 400 billion. Isn’t SZ there, too? Regulations are useless, damn it.
With the talk of Akashic Pages, SZ Corporation also came up.
The public knew as well that despite regulations, it hadn’t been very effective as you could still purchase them if you paid more.
But then, Lee Hayeon dropped a bomb.
[Come, look everyone! This is the effect of my Gift!]
As the effects of her Nurturing Gift were revealed to the world, people were shocked and speechless.
-What’s with that insane growth rate?
-Is Daegi Guild just filled with monsters? From the guild master to the owner, or the recently victorious Yoon Seah, why is everyone in Daegi like that?
-No way… with that growth rate, isn’t it just a monster nurturing guild?
-Wait… shouldn’t this be kept confidential?
-With an ability like that, I wonder who she’ll become in the future…
Bam! Bam! Bam!
[R.E.Gates has sponsored 100,000GP.]
[We formally propose a scouting offer to the Guild Master of the Daegi Guild. We’ll offer a 2% AF stake for a $1 billion contract fee.]
[Oh, no! I’ve received a recruitment proposal from Mr. Gates too…!]
Hayeon’s Growth effect was something that would make anyone involved in guilds take notice. Even when she was A-grade, she was the 2nd division Guild Master of the American First. Now, as an SS-grade, she was worth much more.
As soon as Lee Hayeon’s Gift was revealed, Robert Gates immediately made a lavish offer, but…
[I’ve decided to dedicate myself to Daegi Guild. I appreciate the offer, but I’m sorry!]
-Wow, she rejected it so decisively.
-What’s so good about the Daegi Guild?
-She probably has a significant stake as the guild master.
-2% stake of AF is probably much more valuable than the Daegi Guild stake, lol.
[Instead, since you made such a good offer, let me give you a tip. If you raise your nurturing gift with Akashic Pages, while it may not reach this extent, you can achieve quite similar effects. Just reaching S-rank allows Focused Growth on 3 people~]
Hayeon advised others to train the gifted individuals using the Akashic Page.
-By revealing such methods, isn’t she decreasing the value of the Daegi Guild?
-Yeah, other guilds might start operating their own growth guilds.
-Well, it’s not like there’s an unlimited number of spots available in the Daegi Guild. Top players might go there because of the higher growth rate.
-Still, it’s nice of her to share those tips.
Viewers wondered why Lee Hayeon was pushing for raising the status and strength of supporting gift users, but…
Seeing this, Shizuru’s face stiffened.
‘This will make the Akashic Page price rise…’
No, it wasn’t just a matter of price. It might have been possible to buy it at a high price before, but now due to its high demand it could become difficult to obtain.
And…
[Oh, and I know a lot of you are wondering why I’m giving you these tips.]
In the broadcast, Hayeon smiled meaningfully.
[The Guild owner seems concerned that the regulation of the Akashic Page hasn’t been properly enforced which has led to an increase in their price. Someone from overseas may be trying to make it harder for others to obtain these pages.]
Shizuru bit her lip, then held up her phone.
“Akashic Pages. Buy them now, even if you have to pay double.”
[Ah, okay. Shizuru-nim…!]
Following Shizuru’s order, one of SZ Corporation’s members hurried to purchase Akashic Pages, But…
[The regulations of the opposing government have become stricter. In addition, because the price has skyrocketed, even the goods that have already been contracted are not being delivered. Even if we offer to pay them more, they say they’ll just hand it over to their national guild…!]
[BattleNet’s management bureau came after receiving an illegal trade report and confiscated Akashic Pages. It was a place that had been bribed.!]
[The price of Akashic Pages has skyrocketed by over twice recently, so our proposal is being met with deaf ears. Even without that, there’s hardly any supply these days, and the price is soaring!]
“These guys are really…”
Listening to the reports coming in from all over, Shizuru’s anger flared. Although Shizuru was infuriated by the actions of various governments that were quick to move in on matters related to BattleNet, she had to remain calm and assess the current situation.
“Whoa….”
After taking a deep breath, she made a cold judgment on the current situation.
‘With the current scale, it may not be sustainable to maintain submission and enthrallment.’
Even if the edit was SSS-Rank Gift it would be impossible to keep the brainwashing on such a large scale without the help of Akashic Pages.
If the continued supply of Akashic Pages stopped, the brainwashing would collectively collapse at any moment.
Shizuru checked the people she currently controlled, separating important and unimportant cases.
Drawing a circle and dividing individuals mesmerized into five categories, she thought about the most important group, the next group, and so on.
And then, ‘The most important figure to me is……’
In the very center, she wrote down the Sword King’s name.
Even if all the brainwashing on the figures in Japan’s political and business circles were to be broken, she had to keep the Sword King, Ito Ryuhei, firmly within her grasp. That way, even if her influence in Japan wavered, she could maintain her position as the owner of the Sword King.
Her eyes shone ominously.
‘Even if everyone betrays me, you must remain mine, Only mine. Sword King.’
Speaking of which, she should reinforce the brainwashing once more.
She received fruits and drinks from the housekeeper and headed to the training hall located within the mansion where the Sword King was.
Swish! Swish!
The twin swords, Ganjang and Makya flew in the sky.
And following behind were the swords laid on the training hall floor.
The Sword King was displaying his swordsmanship by wielding not just two, but a hundred swords.
With his eyes closed, completely immersed in training, a sharp aura, like that of a sword flowed out from him.
“Ryuhei, I’ve come.”
Shizuru gently spoke as she placed a tray on the desk located to the side of the training hall, but…
“Shizuru, could you wait a moment? I think I’ve found a clue to complete the hundred swords.”
Unlike his usual demeanor, where he would strangle her as soon as he saw her, the Sword King didn’t even look at her. He was entirely dedicated to his training.
‘Has he been training so hard because he was inspired by Seong jihan’s video?… It seems like he’s making progress already’
Indeed, the undisputed Warrior Rank 1.
While Seong Jihan was fiercely catching up with formidable momentum, the undisputed strongest Warrior on Earth was still the Sword King.
He was doing his utmost to trample over Seong Jihan, who had been fiercely chasing after him, in the upcoming Korea-Japan match.
“Then, I’ll wait for you to finish training.”
As such, the hundred swords floated in the air.
An hour passed like that. However, while she appreciated his reliable dedication, Shizuru, who watched him from the side, became increasingly restless.
‘How can he just keep training like this with me right here?’
Normally, the Sword King would embrace her, saying that he couldn’t focus on training if she was watching him., but…
He was far too focused now compared to normal.
He was now concentrating more than expected, and even though Shizuru usually admired the Sword King’s dedication to train, but…
‘….I can’t stand this.’
With the current situation of the Akashic Page’s price fluctuating due to Hayeon’s broadcast, and with Japan set to lose a considerable amount of influence, Shizuru, who was now sure of this, wasn’t pleased with the Sword King in front of her, who was only focusing on training without even looking at her.
So…
Swish!
After taking off a layer of clothing…
“Ryuhei, look at me.”
“….Shizuru? Didn’t I ask you to wait a moment?”
“No, I can’t wait.”
She amplified the brainwashing once more.
“Ha….”
The Sword King sighed heavily. He was so close to completing the hundred swords.
Why couldn’t she wait a bit longer?
However, his regret gradually faded away when he saw Shizuru’s pristine skin.
“I need to teach you a lesson, Shizuru.”
“Yes, punish me quickly.”
Before he knew it, a twisted smile formed on his lips.
He had completely forgotten the enlightenment from earlier and once again succumbed to the brainwashing, becoming completely captivated by her.
* * *
After Lee Hayeon’s broadcast.
Upon returning home, Seong Jihan was able to see system messages related to Brahma.
[The sponsoring Constellation ‘Brahma’ has found a suitable way of supporting you.]
“Is it finally here?”
Brahma had gone into contemplation about what to sponsor, so it took a while for him to find a suitable ability for Seong Jihan.
[Brahma bestows upon you the rare stat ‘Hellfire’.]
“….?”
Seong Jihan blinked his eyes in confusion.
Hellfire was an ability that was completely unrelated to Brahma’s name.
[Brahma adds that this ability was obtained by paying a huge price to God of Fire.]
Brahma boasted about getting it from the God of Fire.
‘Could it be related to the Crimson Thunder?’
The Crimson Thunder was created by the fusion of Phoenix Flame and Divine thunder together.
Seeing the power that can further enhance the Celestial Judgment, Brahma seemed to have taken an interest and was pushing him in that direction.
And as Seong Jihan expected…
[The Constellation Brahma requests you to combine Divine Thunder and Hellfire to complete Crimson Thunder.]
Brahma had his eyes on the Crimson Thunder.
[If you complete Crimson Thunder, tremendous rewards including the unique stat ‘Crimson Thunder’ will be given.]
[Will you accept this request?]
Brahma was ready to offer gifts if he just completes Crimson Thunder.
Seong Jihan, however, rejected it outright.
“I don’t want to.”
[Brahma is perplexed by your response.]
[Brahma is angry, saying you are arrogant.]
[He threatens to immediately stop the sponsorship.]
Seong Jihan snorted when he saw Brahma’ threatening system messages.
“What arrogance? If you don’t like it, you shouldn’t have sponsored me in the first place.”
[Brahma is furious, saying he has never seen such a reckless player.]
“Are you mad? Then scram!”
Swish! Swish!
He made a dismissive gesture towards the empty air as if chasing away a fly. He remained unfazed even when dealing with the sponsoring constellation.
“Crimson Thunder is something I’m going to complete; it’s not something you’re granting. But you offer Crimson Thunder as a reward? Are you trying to scam me?”
Brahma wanted Crimson Thunder, but Seong Jihan had the upper hand in this deal. And his judgment was spot on.
[Brahma asks what you want.]
The first one to give up was Brahma.
*****
*****
