Chapter 28

Chapter 28

* * *

"Masied, thank you for today."

Unlike the grandeur of when he split the Flesh Golem in half, the current Seong Jihan, offering his greetings, resembled a courteous salesman.

The cleanliness of his suit added to the atmosphere, thanks to the absolute domain of his Force.

"...It's alright. You already. Thanked me. Earlier."

In response to Seong Jihan's sincere gratitude, Masied could only reply with a somewhat embarrassed expression.

The difference in his appearance when he swung his sword towards the Flesh Golem and his current demeanor was too vast.

Especially after witnessing the strike just now, he'd broken into a nervous sweat, so he couldn't treat him as he had before.

"No, I can't end it with just words. The help I received from you was significant. If it weren't for you, Kim Gyuhyuk would have escaped after insulting me and my niece."

"I couldn't let him insult the child."

As Seong Jihan expressed his thanks earnestly, Masied seemed to sense the easing of tension, perhaps recognizing the sincerity.

"So, I want to repay you, but..."

"It's fine. You already helped me complete the mission."

But repaying with that and receiving a reward were different stories.

It was enough with just a word of gratitude; he didn't need to receive anything more.

As Seong Jihan looked at Masied, who was refusing the repayment, he thought to himself.

'It's better to build a relationship with Masied.'

Diego Masied, the last hero of Argentina.

Although he didn't look like much at the moment, his performance in the future would be astonishing.

Before Argentina's downfall, he could compete with America's Barren and Japan's Sawai as a magician.

In fact, from Seong Jihan's perspective, Barren's inexperienced control made Masied seem more outstanding.

In other words, Diego Masied had a high potential to become the world's greatest mage.

Because of this, Seong Jihan decided to awaken his abilities early.

"It's not a material repayment. It's something related to your abilities."

"...What do you mean?"

"Your Gift is related to the soccer ball, right?"

At Seong Jihan's words, Masied nodded slightly.

He wasn't surprised that Seong Jihan knew about his Gift. He had a good reason to believe that. Before BattleNet appeared in 2010, Diego Masied was the world's best soccer player.

Even after other pro sports collapsed due to BattleNet, his SSS-rank Gift, "God of Soccer," adorned the news multiple times.

Although ten years had passed, and his past glory was gone, and he was considered one of the top three trolls in the Gangnam Bronze League.

"The Mage class suits your Gift best."

"...Mage? Me?"

Masied looked at Seong Jihan with disbelief in his eyes. What connection could there be between a soccer ball and a mage?

But...

If it were someone else saying this, he might brush it off as nonsense.

'But I saw his amazing performance earlier.'

Having witnessed Seong Jihan's extraordinary performance, Masied felt a glimmer of hope in his confident words.

SSS-rank Gift, God of Soccer.

Due to the incredible level of this ability, many guilds had tried to research it, but after all those attempts ended in dismal failure, people lost interest in it.

Not belonging to a guild and wandering for ten years, Masied now only kicked balls in the games out of habit. He had lost all hope.

'Mage class...'

The eyes that had lost their spark began to show interest, little by little.

Seeing this, Seong Jihan smiled.

"If you're interested in what I said, I'll give you my contact information."

"...Hmm, alright. But you are streaming right now, so send it to me as a message."

"Sure. I'll send you my contact info, so please get in touch at your convenience. Regardless of repayment, I'll buy you a meal."

"I like beef."

"I like it too."

Seong Jihan and Masied exchanged smiles.

There was a warm atmosphere between them.

Watching from the side, the streamer Golden Light regretted not intervening when Masied made that super save earlier.

'Ah... Oh no... I should've blocked that Fireball earlier!'

Even so, he couldn't just let things be like this.

"Se-Seong Jihan-nim! Me too! Please include me too!"

Swoosh!

Upon hearing those words, Seong Jihan looked at Streamer Golden Light with a displeased expression.

His gaze held the meaning of, "You? Why?"

"That'll be a bit difficult. It's a meal to repay Masied."

"Stream!! I can give you a stream related offer!! I have a great idea!"

"I'll pass on that."

"I want to become Jihan's reliable partner!! Y-Yeah! I want to become your editor!"

"I reject."

Seong Jihan shook his head firmly. He really didn't like noisy people..

"Please..."

Despite Seong Jihan's firm refusal, Streamer Golden Light still wanted to become his editor, even if he had to grovel.

[Logging out.]

The game was about to end.

- He has a good instinct. I feel like Jihan's going to blow up.

- As a 20-year BattleNet expert, I can guarantee that Jihan will skyrocket...

- You crazy bastard, it's only been 10 years since BattleNet came out!

- What the hell are you talking about? How can a traitor who betrayed the Sword King get to the top?

- The Sword King's fans are once again talking nonsense. Who betrayed who? Lol.

An intense debate was going on in Golden Light's chat room, However, due to Seong Jihan's amazing potential, the voices belonging to the Sword King fanclub were almost buried.

'Ugh... I need to become his editor before his rise. I want to be his editor. I want to film Seong Jihan!'

But despite his longing, BattleNet was ruthless.

Flash!

"Oh... No!"

- Yes!

Golden Light's vision flickered, and his viewer chat window was the last thing he saw before being logged out.

* * *

After logging out, Seong Jihan checked the long string of system messages.

[You've Completed Linked Quest - Origin of Zombies (2).]

[You've received 10,000 Achievement Points as a reward.]

[You've received a Crystal Fragment as a reward.]

[The next Linked Quest, Trace of the Apostle (1), will open in the Silver League.]

'10,000... Not bad.'

He decided to think about the next Linked Quest available in the Silver League later and instead focused on the rewards.

10,000 Achievement Points. It was a significant reward given the difficulty.

'And the effect of the Crystal's fragment...'

Seong Jihan checked the item description.

[Crystal's Fragment

- Grade: B

- Limited to one use, and gives the player a Divine Blessing.

- You can only use this item in the Bronze and Silver Leagues.

"Hmm... It's a bit ambiguous." Divine Blessing was a buff bestowed by the peak support class, the Priestess class. It granted an incredibly powerful effect, increasing all attributes by over 50% and is considered as a must in the upper leagues.

However, despite its powerful abilities...

'It's a one-time use.'

With the condition of being usable only in the Bronze and Silver Leagues, it was quite disappointing.

In reality, the main reward was the 10,000 Achievement Points, and this item was just an extra. However, Seong Jihan placed it carefully in his inventory.

He didn't know when he might need it.

'Next is the clear reward for the Defense Map.'

[You've achieved 1st place in the Defense Game.]

[As a reward for 1st place, experience points and GP gain increase by 50%.]

[You've completed the bonus mission.]

[You've received experience points and GP rewards three times the normal amount.]

[You've leveled up to level 3.]

[You've received 6,000 GP.]

Achieving 1st place increased the reward experience points by 50%, and with the added bonus mission reward, he gained three levels in an instant reaching level 13.

There were only 12 levels left before he could participate in the Silver promotion match. It was an explosive growth rate that no other player had been able to achieve before.

'Good.'

It was at that moment when Seong Jihan was about to assess his abilities with a joyful heart.

Creak-!

A sound of splitting came from the sword that was hanging on Seong Jihan's shoulder.

At the same time, another system message popped up one after another.

[You completely understand the otherworldly Religion.]

[Your Divine Power has increased by 1 and was integrated into Force.]

[Grade of 'Otherworldly relic - Urk High Priest's sword' has been decreased to D.]

['Otherworldly Relic - Urk High Priest's sword' has fulfilled its purpose.]

[Your Divine Power has increased by 1 and Integrated into Force.]

[Grade of 'Otherworldly Relic - Urk High Priest's sword' has been decreased to E.]

'Are Divine Power and Force not proportional 1:1?'

Feeling disappointed, Seong Jihan touched the sword.

It had been quite useful, but now it has dropped to E grade.

Since he wouldn't be able to use it to absorb Divine Power anymore, should he buy a new weapon?

Just then...

[The 'Otherworldly Relic - Urk High Priest's sword' cannot withstand the power left within and is being destroyed.]

Boom!

The sword that had been holding on barely exploded instantly.

The sword he'd used a lot of GP to buy cracked and exploded since it couldn't withstand the power of the Triad of Martial mastery and Mount Tai Suppression.

'Oh no...!'

But the problem didn't end there.

The power that had exploded from the shattered sword was trying to spread out in all directions.

He'd realized his martial arts technique wasn't perfect when he used Flashing Sky Thunder Steps, and he'd used all of his strength with Mount Tai Suppression, making the power surge even more severe.

'It seems in-game events affect the real world.'

Jihan quickly absorbed the strength from the sword into his three dantians.

If he left it alone, the situation could escalate to the point where it could blow up the house

Chirp!

The power flowing into the three dantian was too explosive. Due to the uncontrolled power that hadn't been properly harnessed, Seong Jihan's clothes were torn in various places, revealing his flesh. However, the remaining energy from the sword was quickly absorbed back into Seong Jihan through his back.

And then...

[Your Divine Power has increased by 1 and was integrated into Force.]

[Your Force has increased by 1.]

[Martial Power, linked to Force, has increased by 1.]

Seong Jihan blinked in surprise at the unexpected messages.

'Three Divine Power equals one Force?'

What luck.

Although his C-grade sword, bought with all his wealth, had been destroyed, Seong Jihan's heart was filled with joy due to the unexpected gains.

He'd earned two unique stat points from a C-rank weapon.

What a scam.

[Your Force has surpassed 15.]

[From now on, you can only absorb Divine Power from relics of A grade or higher.]

The next messages were quite disappointing.

They wouldn't let him get free honey so easily.

'For now, A-grade items are too expensive for me, so I won't be able to purchase relics for a while.'

Thinking this, Seong Jihan invested all his remaining points he gained after leveling up into Force.

Level: 13

Affiliation: Bronze League - Gangnam Area 1

Martial Power - 18

Force - 18

Thanks to the link of his three Dantians, both his Martial Power and Force had become 18.

He only had two stats, but just looking at them was reassuring.

'And I have plenty of Achievement Points too. I should check the Achievement Store.'

As Seong Jihan calculated his pouring rewards and pondered, the door was abruptly opened.

Yoon Seah exclaimed, "Uncle! Uncle!" as she entered.

Wearing an apron, Yoon Seah's bright face turned puzzled as she blinked her eyes.

"What are you doing? Your clothes are torn, and why is Dad's suit...?"

"My sword exploded."

"Oh, I see."

Yoon Seah nodded her head as she saw the traces of the exploded sword all over the room.

It seemed like his weapon hadn't been able to handle the abuse anymore.

"Tsk tsk, What crappy weapons were you using until now... Well, now that I am a millionaire, I will buy my uncle a weapon!"

"Did you already receive money from the Neo Self Defense Force?"

"Yeah, that's why I was able to donate to you."

Upon hearing her words, Seong Jihan recalled the messages where Yoon Seah had been trying to dissuade him.

[Uncle! Stop! I'm fine! You'll lose subscribers if you keep going on!]

Along with that, Kim Gyuhyuk's cursing came to his mind.

"You... are you okay?"

"Huh? What, you mean the GP I spent?"

"No, I mean the curses you heard."

"Oh, come on... I'm fine. Uncle, you've educated me well. So, it's all good."

Yoon Seah smiled.

She had a face that seemed completely unfazed.

But due to past memories, Seong Jihan couldn't be sure whether that smile was truly real or not.

"Anyway, let's go eat. I've prepared something, and I have something I want to talk to you about.""

"Talk about what?"

"I'll tell you while we eat."

"Sure, I'll be right there."

"Yeah, take your time!"

What could she want to talk about all of a sudden?

As Yoon Seah left the room, Seong Jihan changed his clothes with a puzzled look.