After Sae-ah left, Hee-soo, unable to hold back her anger, spoke to the security guard at the Gift Hall. "You have the CCTV footage from the other day, the 22nd, right? Give it to me."
"No. I can't do that."
"I'm the victim here."
"Unless you have an official report, I cannot show it to you."
"Do you also take the Korea Daily family lightly?"
The security guard flinched at Hee-soo's gaze. He'd been on duty the night Hee-soo clashed with JiHan. He knew Hee-soo's anger and resentment were real.
'Antagonizing her could be bad…'
He wasn't an outstanding player like JiHan. He was just an ordinary citizen without any significant backing and was scared of becoming the target of her anger if he kept insisting on regulations.
"O-okay." The security guard was overwhelmed by Hee-soo's authority, so he showed her the footage from that day.
Painful memories from that day resurfaced. She remembered her cousin's broken legs and her hair and eyebrows being plucked after she screamed at JiHan.
"Ugh…!" Trying to stop her body from shaking, Hee-soo continued to watch the video.
Not long after she fled the scene with her injured cousin, she saw Sae-ah talking with JiHan.
'Sae-ah… Don't tell me…'
Sae-ah usually had a bright smile and a cheerful demeanor, but she had a gloomy expression on her face in the CCTV footage. There's no way she would have made such an expression if she'd gotten a good Gift.
"What were they talking about?"
"Well…"
"You've already shown me the footage. Is there any need to hide it from me now?" Hee-soo said with a cold tone.
The security guard finally spilled what he'd heard. "She said that she messed up and that she might have to study for college entrance exams."
"What? She messed up?"
"Yes. She seemed to accept it later… but after that, I wasn't able to hear any details."
"Ha. Haha. Hahaha! Seriously? Is that true?"
"Yes."
"Hahaha! Crazy bitch. You acted all high and mighty, yet…!"
If an Academy student quit to focus on their studies, they'd received the worst possible result.
"It was all a front, wasn't it, Sae-ah?" A smile appeared on Hee-soo's face.
'How should I expose this information? A confrontation, or an article in Korea Daily?'
Finally, she made a decision.
'I'll do both!'
Hee-soo quickly returned to the classroom and looked around. "Hey, where's Sae-ah?"
"She quit and went home."
"What?! Already?"
"The resignation process doesn't take long."
Many students quit after receiving their Gift, so the procedure was simple.
'Tsk… she ran away.'
She'd wanted to mock her in front of everyone, but it seemed like she'd missed her chance.
"Why are you looking for Sae-ah?"
Hee-soo briefly thought about revealing what she'd discovered but decided against it.
'I can't spill the news without the person in question present.'
If she revealed it there, other media outlets could publish the news before Korea Daily.
'It should be published in our newspaper first.'
What could she do to tarnish Sae-ah's reputation more effectively? Several ideas came to her mind, and a smile appeared on Hee-soo's face.
It was her first joyous smile since her hair and eyebrows were plucked out.
[About South Korea's first 'TOP 100' player in 4 years - ARABOJA]
[A monster player who stayed in 1st place?! (Surprise) - Reckla News]
[Solo 1st-Ranking Player?! 2nd in 'TOP 100' dividend?! What are the chances of Sung JiHan winning?]
After news of JiHan participating in the 'TOP 100' promotion match was announced, every media outlet in South Korea focused on him.
The 'Top 100' promotion matches were held once a month for each League, so many people took part in them each year.
1,200 players would participate in the Bronze League 'TOP 100' matches throughout the year, and if you added all the Leagues from Bronze to Platinum, that counted for about 4,800 people.
The fact that there hadn't been a single Korean player among those 4,800 people a year for the past four years showed how bad the state of Korea was.
Their League itself wasn't bad, but their most promising players were usually recruited by other countries.
In the end, the only prospects to stay in Korea were those that weren't at the top, but the player named Sung JiHan had appeared out of nowhere, making his stunning debut by breaking the Sword King's Dual Sword Statue on the Sword Palace. In just a month, he completely dominated the Bronze League and made it to the 'TOP 100'.
If you were a Korean, you couldn't help but have high hopes for him.
- If you're Korean, please, root for Sung JiHan!!!!
- Yes~ Baron~~~
- If Baron weren't there, I would've bet on him.
- Foolish people… Baron only has a win rate of 75%~~ Sung JiHan is at 100%~~ You should obviously bet on Sung JiHan~~
- There are many people who don't know shit. Don't you know he achieved 75% in New York 1?
- Watch a video of Sung JiHan. He isn't at Bronze level. He should be Gold at least.
- Don't say nonsense. If what you say is true, Baron should be at Platinum. Lol.
"Haa, they're still fighting." Sae-ah watched people engage in heated debate while shaking her head.
They said that keyboard warriors never lost their fighting spirit. Almost every forum in Korea was full of discussions on Sung JiHan vs. Baron.
"Sae-ah, what are you looking at?"
"Ah, this…"
How was she supposed to explain that mess? Sae-ah showed him her screen.
[If you don't pick Baron, you're just an idiot.]
(Comments: 5779)
[You should just kill yourself if you're scared of losing money. It's so easy to earn money, lol. Can't you understand this situation? The fools are offering their money. Your money's going to get duplicated. Middle tier 100% VS Top tier 75%. Where should you bet? What's wrong with the guys who haven't bet for Baron? Why do you live? Lol, especially those guys trying to make money with stocks. Don't be delusional. I don't feel the need to say anything more, but let me give you a warning… those who pick Sung JiHan or other trash while pretending to be 'patriotic' or 'good at analysis', I will rip you guys apart for acting arrogantly. Legal defense? Attorney? Baron will pay for it. I'm invincible. Baron is 'God'. Take a look. Here's proof that I've bet a million on Baron.]
A screenshot showing he'd bet a million GP on Baron was proudly pinned in the post.
"Oh, what a good person." JiHan seemed happy to see that.
"A good person…? This guy?"
"Yes. After all, I'm going to take a million dollars from him. No wonder the returns on me increased."
"They increased? Ah… a highlight video of Baron was trending recently. Maybe it's because of that?"
Due to Baron's highlight video, the public was impressed by the sight of an archmage who completely dominated the Bronze League.
JiHan had also shown an overwhelming performance, and maybe it was just because a Mage was more spectacular to watch than a Warrior, but the public had set their hearts on Baron.
JiHan was thankful for that. "Yes. If I include the most kills, the payout will be 500%."
"Woah… it increased that much?" Sae-ah looked at JiHan with sparkling eyes.
"Uncle, maybe I…"
"No. Don't do it."
"But isn't it guaranteed?!"
"I'm going to give you all the money I earn, so don't gamble."
Sae-ah pouted. She understood that he didn't want her to become addicted to gambling, but a 500% return…
If JiHan was so sure, she could get 25 million just from betting five million!
How could she not be tempted?
"Tsk… I just wanted to help you."
JiHan chuckled and patted Sae-ah's back. "If you want to help me, don't think about money. Just train."
"Ugh."
"So, what do you have to do today?"
"300 push-ups, 300 sit-ups, 300 squats, 30 km on the treadmill…"
"And how much have you done so far?"
"Nothing…"
"Alright~ Then… how about you start?"
Sae-ah sighed and nodded.
The training routine he'd placed her on to obtain the rare stat was very rudimentary, but she had no choice but to follow it.
"I'll go and train. Uncle, could you turn off the computer?"
"Sure."
As Sae-ah left the room, JiHan turned to the computer and logged into Battle Tube. He wanted to watch Baron's new highlight video that she'd mentioned.
The video was titled: [ULTIMATE MAGE, Baron Williams!]
As the title 'Ultimate Mage' suggested, the highlight video focused on Baron's relentless strength, but that just made JiHan chuckle.
"As expected, his roots were already rotten."
The top ranker from his previous life hadn't changed at all. His control had been terrible since he was in Bronze.
The simple truth of it was that Baron Williams was a bad player from birth.
* * *
[The 'TOP 100' Bronze promotion match is starting.]
The 'TOP 100' promotion match started according to the World League 1st's, USA New York 1's, schedule.
There, it was August 25th, 6 PM. In Korea, it was August 26th, 7 AM. There was a 13-hour time difference
At the same time, the USA's Battle Net stream was broadcast on channel 0.
The New York League was ranked 1st in the world, so they had the privilege of broadcasting the games worldwide.
The American commentators passionately commented on the event.
= Alright, the 'TOP 100' promotion match of August is here! Finally, the day has come. As always, Bronze League will be the first to start!
= Interest in the Bronze League promotion match is higher than usual! Cristoph, why's that?
= That's obviously because of our American rising star, Baron Williams!
"Baron! Baron! Baron! Baron! Baron!"
As Baron William's name was mentioned, his fans could be heard shouting. He was the owner of an SSS-rank Gift and was already more popular than other top stars in the USA.
= But still… Baron will have to face a formidable competitor!
= Exactly! Sung JiHan is a player from South Korea who has a better league record than Baron! He's a monster who never lost 1st place in any game!
= Not missing 1st place a single time… Christoph, is that even possible?
= Based on my research, it's a record no other player has achieved before! Although the level of the South Korean League might not be that high… it's still an impressive record!!
"Booo!"
As they praised Baron's opponent, JiHan, people started booing them.
The USA had the right to broadcast the 'TOP 100' promotion match, and the commentators tried to act neutral, but fan reactions made things evident.
= So the focus of today's Bronze promotion match will be on the key player Baron and…
= Player Sung JiHan.
= It looks like the match is starting in five seconds!
[5… 4… 3… 2… 1…]
As the system's countdown reached 0, the battle between the top 100 Bronze players from around the world started.