Episode 18
Taehyun looked down at White, who had fainted unable to withstand the force of the predation, and Black, who was already dead.
Black and white brothers.
In their past life, they were infamous as A-Class Named Mines, but the current ones lacked everything compared to their majesty.
Skill, precision, and an eye for recognizing opponents stronger than oneself.
Like the current Ahn Hyun-soo, he is at the level of a rookie in the magic world.
'Have you not realized the gap yet?'
I would say it's not as good as it was in its prime.
It was Taehyun who easily defeated Seol Hoon-do, a Grade A veteran player.
He probably knew that unless he was attacked by surprise, the current black and white brothers would be no match for him.
Still, they hired these guys.
'I guess they gave me a chance. Well, he didn't have a bad image.'
Taehyun shook his head as he remembered Seol Hoon-do's reputation.
In his previous life, he was loyal to an organization called Taesan Guild.
He was a man who took full responsibility for injustice.
"Not bad."
The corners of my mouth naturally rose.
I thought that the Awakened Oath might be more useful than expected.
But that wasn't what mattered now.
"Predation."
Tiring.
[Skill cannot be used due to overload. I lack physical ability.]
An unwelcome message appears when you use a skill.
Taehyun frowned.
Overload and physical capacity.
The skill was still not activated for two reasons.
Taehyun let out a small sigh and drank the fatigue potion and magic potion he brought with him at once.
And once again.
I used the skill.
[Skill cannot be used due to overload. I lack physical ability.]
The same words were just repeated.
'Somehow I said it went too easily.'
A lot has happened in less than a month since the regression.
I acquired the skill called Predation, experienced Gate Break, conquered undiscovered dungeons, and received an invitation to the player test.
By gorging on various skills in proportion to the events, Taehyun was able to grow rapidly.
As a result.
Although it is only a C grade right now.
I have gained enough power to compete with A-grade players and demons.
That too at the level of a top ranker.
S rank in just a few more months.
No, I was confident that I would not lose even if compared to the SS grade that had not yet appeared.
Perhaps a grade beyond SS.
I didn't know I would become the first SSS level player.
'I thought so.'
Taehyun frowned once again as he looked at the message in front of him.
[Skill cannot be used due to overload. I lack physical ability.]
[Skill cannot be used due to overload. I lack physical ability.]
No matter how much you try to activate Predation, the same message appears.
"Stoneskin."
"Stealth."
"paralysis."
"The monarch's… Ah, is this okay?"
There was no problem activating other skills except for the monarch's heart, which could not be confirmed immediately.
After Taehyun unlocked the skill, he opened the status window.
Name: Taehyun Kim
Age: 19
Grade: C
Strength: 31 Stamina: 33 Speed: 32 Horsepower: 65 Charisma: 5
Fatigue: 30%
Remaining horsepower: 22/65
[skill]
Predation (X) – Can prey on the desired target. Magic power: 15
Stone Skin (C) – Can strengthen the body. Magic Power: 9
Stealth (C) – You can hide your body. Horsepower: 8
Paralysis (C) – Restrains the subject's body. Magic power: 7
Lord's Heart (C) – Increases party members' abilities. Magic power: 10
Predation, which was gaining experience well, was made unusable.
'Tsk. Is this the limit for now?'
Lack of physical ability.
After a few attempts, it didn't take much time to understand what the message represented.
In the first place, regardless of grade, ordinary awakened people could only possess one skill.
Only talented players called geniuses have awakened multiple skills, and most of the non-main skills are classified as low-level skills.
Therefore, natural talent was important in the player world.
natural body. Natural grade. Innate stats. Innate skill.
This is because the skill puts a significant load on the body just by awakening it.
I didn't know if that was the reason why the skill wasn't registered even after devouring a hundred bags.
'no. 'I'm not sure about this either.'
Taehyun currently possesses five skills: 'Predation', 'Stone Skin', 'Stealth', 'Paralysis', and 'Monarch's Heart'.
Predation was a skill whose end was unknown, and the rest were mid-level C-grade skills.
'It's grade C.'
Taehyun had much higher stats than ordinary C-rank awakened people.
However, it is ridiculous to have five skills even with a B-grade body in the first place.
In other words, in order to have a skill higher than this, you must either increase your awakening level or train.
The only way was to raise my physical stats.
The latter was all Taehyun could do, as his predation was immediately sealed.
After assessing the situation, I could only see my surroundings.
Before Taehyun arrived, two men who had been attacked by the Black and White Brothers were seen.
They were the players who were guarding Taehyun's surroundings under Go Tae-wook's instructions.
The position of the player he wanted to be in the past.
I realized once again that their lives were closer to death than anyone else.
"Please attain Buddhahood."
Taehyun quietly bowed to them.
* * *
"I'll finish this, so you can just go in."
Under the moonlight.
Go Tae-wook said with a dark expression.
His eyes were already fixed on the two players who had passed away.
"sorry."
Any further words would be an insult.
After bowing his head to the players dispatched with Go Tae-wook. I just went back home.
Two other players from the association who were watching this raised their voices.
"Brother Black and White, these bastards dare."
Crack.
Enraged by the death of his colleague, magical energy leaked from his body.
Seeing this, another man placed a hand on his shoulder.
"calm down. "After all, these friends were prepared to give up their lives."
"shit… still… ."
"Deputy Kim is right. Calm down, Assistant Manager Park."
Only then did Go Tae-wook look away from his subordinate and look at Baek, who was unable to move due to the trapping skill.
His eyes, which usually did not show much emotion, suddenly became sharper.
Baek is the younger brother of the black and white brothers who have recently been gaining notoriety through Mine.
It was fortunate for him, both publicly and privately, that he was alive.
"At least one of them is still alive. "Is he going to let him die in peace like this?"
gulp.
Assistant Manager Kim and Assistant Manager Park swallowed dry saliva.
Just as high-level awakened people are not all at the same level, the use of skills also varied depending on the user.
Go Tae-wook is even called a precision machine thanks to his skill 'Observer's Eye'.
His other nickname is Torturer.
The skill drives the target to the brink of death and then recovers again.
It was an honorable title that arose because countless pieces of information were uncovered during the process.
'He won't be able to die gracefully if he gets caught by Deputy Chief Go.'
'Let's taste hell once.'
The two deputies trembled at the same time, recalling the interrogation process from before.
"Anyway, did that kid really catch the black and white brothers?"
"A kid named Kim Tae-hyun, what kind of skill has he awakened?"
Players were placed around Kim Tae-hyun to protect him.
The two assistant managers, who only knew that much, looked at Heuk, who had become a cold corpse, and asked.
However, Go Tae-wook also just shook his head.
"I'm not sure."
"yes?"
Assistant Manager Kim asked back, and Assistant Manager Park muttered, 'I heard the deputy director scouted you?'
Even though you scouted him, you still don't know.
It was a remark that anyone who knew what kind of person Ko Tae-wook was could never understand.
But Go Tae-wook was sincere.
Taehyun's potential exceeds his own thoughts.
That was enough to leave me speechless.
* * *
"It's an undiscovered dungeon… "If things like this keep happening, I won't have anything to say even if I'm impeached."
Ji Jin-hee frowned as she looked at the data handed to her by Yoo Ah-young.
Although it is said that the national territory has increased due to unification.
New Korea's area cannot be said to be large compared to other countries.
An undiscovered dungeon in a place like that. If any damage occurred, the responsibility for it should fall entirely on Ji Jin-hee, the president of the association.
"I'm sure it will continue to be discovered. "Everything related to the Abyss has been done this way so far."
Ji Jin-hee sighed at Yoo Ah-young's confident words.
Night Walker is considered the best in information collection and analysis in New Korea.
These were words spoken by the guild leader there, so it was a harsh reality to ignore.
"This is already being criticized for sending out invitations to teenagers, so only reporters will be excited."
"So, how about we play a game at this point?"
"player? I guess it's about conquering the recently discovered dungeon... ."
Yoo Ah-young shook her head at Ji Jin-hee's simple handling of the matter.
"The president of the association is still the same."
"You put this old man to shame. "If you have any insight, please tell me."
When Ji Jin-hee asked for help without hesitation, Yoo Ah-young smiled bitterly.
Ji Jin-hee, President of the New Korea Players Association.
The countless achievements he has accumulated as an S-rank player in the association.
His honest and upright personality, backed by his skills, naturally placed him in the position of president of the association.
The problem was that politics and media play were essential for that position.
At that time, Night Walker guild leader Yoo Ah-young held out his hand.
She received help from Ji Jin-hee as a child and voluntarily became his eyes, ears, hands and feet.
Information about the Abyss, the dynamics of the demons, the awakening of new skills, etc.
Information that would not have been sufficient even if a huge amount of money was allocated was given to Ji Jin-hee for free.
It is a relationship that even the picky Deputy Director Tae-wook Ko acknowledged.
Ji Jin-hee's blind trust in Yoo Ah-young was not for nothing.
"That's not it. Player test to be held this time. "Let's use this place for that."
Yoo Ah-young told me about a plan that had already been drawn up in her head.
"It's a double-edged sword."
"There is a lot of talk about sending out invitations to children who are not yet adults, but this is what we are showing. What kind of power do those kids have? "In fact, the media will like it."
Yoo Ah-young, remembering the nature of the media, spoke with confidence.
"good. "Let's stick to the plan."
Ji Jin-hee, who made the decision without difficulty, immediately began drawing up a detailed plan.
"Now that I think about it, this player test. Your younger brother also received an invitation, right? "You can't fool blood, after all."
Jinhee Ji asked with a wry smile, recalling the shy kid she used to be.
"If you don't do 'that much' in 'that family,' you have to get them out of the family register."
Ji Jin-hee laughed heartily while looking at Yoo Ah-young speaking grumpily.
"It sounded more interesting to me than that, right? "I heard there's a child that Deputy Director Go Tae-wook contacted directly."
"Ah, you mean student Taehyun Kim?"
"Kim Tae-hyun."
Yoo Ah-young tried to recite the name.
Contrary to what she said, she was fully aware of everything she had done over the past month.
"He's an interesting kid."
There was no need to hide the truth.