Chapter 33: Chapter 33
[Welcome to the Bronze League - Gangnam Area.]
[The mission is 'dungeon'.]
'As expected. It's a dungeon.'
As soon as JiHan logged in, he got a message saying he'd been assigned the dungeon mission.
[You've been summoned to the 8th passageway of the 'Conqueror's Tomb'.]
There were 10 passageways in total. Although there were some differences, the difficulty of the dungeon was similar regardless of which passage you were summoned in.
[Reach the dungeon's bottom floor and find the conqueror's treasure.]
[Up to 5 parties can reach the dungeon's bottom floor.]
The game allowed only the upper 50% to clear the mission, just like the previous ones.
[You are not affiliated with any guilds.]
[A random party will be assigned.]
JiHan was summoned to the 8th passageway and waited for the rest of his party members.
Viewers began entering JiHan's channel one by one.
- He's been gaming since early this morning.
- Mr. Sung! Your viewership will drop!
- Only jobless people are watching.
- Aren't even the jobless people sleeping?
The viewers, who were complaining about JiHan starting to play too early in the morning, were unable to hide their surprise when they saw the mission.
- Is it a dungeon?
- He already reached level 15?!
- How come he reached 15 so fast?
- It seems like if you finish 1st five games in a row, you reach level 15. Crazy…
Your level grew quickly up to level 10 in Battle Net, but your leveling speed slowed from then on.
If you lost, your experience points went down, so if you wanted to grow, you had to stay in the top 50%.
JiHan, that monstrous rookie, reached level 15 after only five games, so the viewers' reactions were understandable.
- It seems like he hasn't joined a guild yet.
- Won't he be assigned random people then?
- Yes. It seems like the 1st-place streak will finally break.
- JiHan's too strong, so I'm sure he will finish 1st in the dungeon as well.
In dungeons, you had to cooperate with your teammates to overcome obstacles.
The viewers thought they might finally be able to see his status window, so they waited for the other players to be summoned, and soon…
Flash, flash.
Three players were summoned simultaneously.
"Ah… we were separated from our team."
"We're doomed!"
The three players that were summoned had black eagles engraved on their equipment.
One could easily guess that they were members of the same guild based on that alone.
The team was composed of two men and one woman, and they exchanged glances and sighed.
"The Support is missing…"
"It seems like he fell into a Support survival map."
After level 15, Battle Net's matchmaking system allowed you to party up with and play with other guild members, but there were some exceptions.
In their case, one of their party members ended up on a solo survival map, so they were separated.
The players belonged to the Black Eagle Guild, which was one of the top guilds. They were making gloomy expressions.
"Ah~ We're doomed! I just need one more level to get to 25. Why now of all times?!"
"Ahh, you're right. I'm not sure if we'll be able to finish among the top five. Ah… but… isn't that person…?"
The players were lamenting their fate when…
"It… it's Sung JiHan!"
They smiled brightly as soon as they realized JiHan was summoned as a Support.
"We're saved!"
"If we're on the same team as JiHan, we're definitely going to make it to the top five."
"Only the top five? I think we're going to finish 1st! Hahaha!"
Every user in Bronze League had heard about JiHan, a monster who was dominating the League.
What if they were on the same team as him?
Getting into the top 50% seemed guaranteed, but finishing 1st was also very likely.
'I'm glad we're missing that Support.'
'Level 25! Level 25!'
While they were feeling relieved, some were disappointed.
- If it's the Black Eagles, he won't get trolled like last time.
- Yes. They might not be a top 10 guild, but still, they're among the highest-ranking ones.
- Ah~ He's going to finish 1st again~
- Shit. It seems like getting his subscriber count to 200,000 will be faster.
Most viewers were hoping for him to slip from 1st place so that he would show his status window, so they were disappointed. After all, unlike last time, his party looked like they were willing to do things properly.
- Mr. Sung~ You've been working hard since early this morning ♥ Could you open your inbox…? If you do so, Take-chan will send you a dazzling donation ♥
- That person's also been working hard since early this morning.
- At least Take-chan has a job.
- Aren't we worse than him for watching this so early in the morning?
- Shut up, you bastard!!
"Mr. Sung, hello!"
"We're guildies from Black Eagle."
"Nice to meet you! I'm subscribed to your channel!"
The three players extended their hands toward JiHan with smiles.
"Nice to meet you. I'm Sung JiHan."
Sung JiHan also shook their hands with a smile. It seemed like he'd gotten a normal party.
[The game is starting.]
As soon as the alert message rang, the party quickly began discussing their strategy.
"Let's go with a normal position. Our Warrior will be in the front, the Archer in the middle, the Mage and Mr. Sung in the back. What do you think?"
The Black Eagle members suggested the most basic four-person formation. It was a safe suggestion that had been tested through hundreds and thousands of dungeon runs.
Not only that, but with someone like JiHan, they would be able to receive solid support from behind.
However…
"Thanks for the consideration, but I think I should be at the forefront."
JiHan walked toward the front.
"Do you want to finish 1st?"
"Of course!"
"Then you just have to follow me."
"…"
It was an arrogant statement, but it felt a bit different. After all, it was Sung JiHan who'd said it. He was an irregular who'd cut a flesh golem in half.
"Shall we get going?"
"Ah? Yes…!"
As JiHan entered the dungeon, the others started to follow him as if they were mesmerized.
'This is comfortable.'
The Black Eagle Guild Warrior stared at JiHan's back.
Until then, he'd been running around at the forefront and sweating to protect his party members. They were in a dungeon, but he was finally able to relax a bit.
'Is this what it means to take a bus?'
Taking a bus was a slang term often used when you won a game thanks to a player with excellent skills.
He never dreamed he would experience it on Battle Net.
Swoosh-
A pile of dirt rose from the floor in front of JiHan.
"Do not disturb his rest."
"The emperor is eternal."
Several clay soldiers with human shapes appeared. They were monsters known as 'guards' that appeared in the Conqueror's Tomb, and they were part of the reason that August's dungeon was considered difficult.
Each of them was individually strong, but they were often summoned in groups and engaged in collaborative attacks, which made them very dangerous.
However…
BOOM!
"Let's go."
As JiHan extended his fist, the guards easily shattered as if they were works of pottery.
Did they have no defenses?
It wasn't unreasonable for the Black Eagle guildies to think that was the case, but…
Clang! Clang!
When the Warrior following behind JiHan struck the remnants of the guards with his sword, it sounded like he was hitting thick steel.
'It's too hard.'
The simple fact of the matter was that JiHan was too strong. It wasn't that the guards were weak.
The monsters kept exploding with one blow each.
Whoosh!
A dungeon trap activated, and a hail of arrows flew toward JiHan, but…
Swish-
The arrows suddenly halted in mid-flight and fell to the ground as he raised his hands.
Thud- Thud-
'It seems like we aren't needed at all…'
The Warrior checked the scoreboard.
The leading teams were on the 2nd underground floor, and the bottom teams hadn't even finished the 1st one, but they were already on the 4th floor.
- Crazy. They're already on the 4th floor.
- ??? There's no way this is going to finish before my delivery chicken arrives, right?
- Go easy!
- The Black Eagle guys are impressed.
- This dungeon is just too compatible for him.
As one viewer said, the Conqueror's Tomb was the easiest dungeon for JiHan to clear by himself.
Instead of any puzzle elements that required using your brain or playing cooperatively with other team members, there were powerful monsters and traps everywhere.
It was the perfect dungeon for pushing through with brute force, and it seemed like the game would easily end with JiHan's team finishing 1st again.
…
'That cannot happen!'
Takeda, who had just woken up, quickly came to his senses.
He transferred the funds he'd received from his higher-ups in the Neo Self-Defense Force to a sub account and began his operation.
'It won't be as easy as it was with that Mage from before…'
Gyu-hyuk had a strong resentment against JiHan, so he had been easy to convince.
The players with JiHan were about to reach level 25, so each game was precious to them.
Any attempt to persuade them was probably going to fail.
'But… they don't necessarily have to finish 1st.'
Of course, finishing 1st would be the best possible outcome, and they would receive a lot of experience and GP, but their experience would also probably greatly increase if they finished 2nd or 3rd.
He just had to cover for the losses of not finishing 1st.
"Let's see…"
Takeda quickly began preparing.
Sword King FC 898, Sword King FC 168, Sword King FC 747…
He logged into multiple accounts and looked up the Battle Tube accounts of the Black Eagle members.
'As expected, they have almost no viewers.'
Not only were they Bronze players, but it was too early in the morning, so there was hardly anyone interested in watching them play.
'What should I put up as a reward? Hmm… 100K GP should be enough, right?'
Although they were easily breaking through the Conqueror's Tomb at the moment, every party member had to participate on the 7th floor to complete the mission.
So what if he assigned them a quest to delay them?
Takeda was thinking about how to word his quest when…
- Woah. Are they already on the 5th underground floor?
- A free pass.
- Why's my chicken taking so long?!
News that JiHan had already reached the 5th floor appeared on the main screen.
"Wait… they're already on the 5th floor…?!"
'M-Mr. Sung, aren't you too strong?'
With that, he became unsure about whether hindering JiHan could stop him from finishing 1st.
Takeda took action.
Since he couldn't use the initial plan anymore, he needed to take some drastic measures.
'I have to gamble with the funds I received from the general manager!'
It wasn't even his money, after all, so he could use as much as he wished… right?
His hands were trembling as he typed.
'It… it will be okay… right?'
Tap- Tatap-
A viewer quest was created through one of his Sword King FC accounts.
[Commit suicide and prevent JiHan from finishing 1st.]
It was a quest that players aiming for a promotion would usually cast aside, but…
The offered reward was insane.
[Reward: 1,000,000 GP]
He'd thrown a huge sum of money—the equivalent of a million dollars—into the quest.
"Woah…!"
As the three Black Eagle guildies looked at the quest, their eyes shook.
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