Chapter 8

Altio placed his hand on his racing heart.

To date, only two trainees had completed his training.

However, neither of them succeeded in this final challenge.

Yet, for some reason, he believed that Jeong-hoon could pass the final test.

'Just one hit. Just one effective hit.'

If he could do that, he would earn the coveted title.

[Epic Quest: Altio's Final Training]

- Restriction: Non-advanced Martial Artist

- Reward: [Title] Acknowledged by the Instructor

- Description: Defeat Instructor Altio in a sparring match.

Jeong-hoon's eyes gleamed as he read the quest description.

In his previous life, he had accepted Altio's quest and trained hard but failed the final test within 30 seconds.

'This time, I'll succeed.'

Jeong-hoon accepted the quest.

"Good choice."

Altio said, smiling broadly as he stepped in front of Jeong-hoon.

'It's a good thing I learned the King's Fist.'

Jeong-hoon's stamina was already at its limit.

One hit from Altio could be enough to knock him out.

Still, he couldn't fathom the idea of losing.

[NPC Information]

- Nickname: Altio

- Level: 30

- Class: Martial Artist

Altio was level 30.

While Jeong-hoon had defeated a level 31 lower warrior before, Altio was a different caliber.

His experience as an instructor made him a formidable opponent.

"Shall we begin?"

Truthfully, the success rate of this quest was 0%.

It wasn't designed to be completed.

"Just a moment."

Jeong-hoon took out a bottle of milk from his inventory and drank it.

[Stamina slightly recovered.]

[Repeated consumption. Stamina will no longer recover.]

[To recover stamina, wait 10 minutes before consuming again.]

The quest didn't specify that he had to defeat Altio with depleted stamina, so recovering his stamina wasn't against the rules.

Although the recovery was slight, it was better than nothing.

Jeong-hoon then utilized his holy power.

Having practiced it intermittently, he was due to unlock a new skill.

[Martial Artist-exclusive skill, 'Steadfast Will' activated.]

[You have learned the skill, 'Lesser Healing (Normal).']

Perfect timing!

[Lesser Healing]

- Type: Active

- Level: 1

- Grade: Normal

- Consumes 1 mana to recover 2 stamina.

- Repeated use on the same target reduces healing effectiveness and increases mana consumption.

Jeong-hoon used the skill to heal himself, steadying his trembling muscles.

"What the...?!"

Altio's eyes widened in shock as Jeong-hoon, who had been on the brink of collapse, suddenly restored his stamina.

"I'm ready, let's begin."

Jeong-hoon initiated the attack with King's Fist Stage 1, his fist thrusting forward sharply.

"!"

Altio barely dodged, stepping to the side.

Thwack!

But dodging was an illusion.

The beauty of the King's Fist lay in its continuity.

Jeong-hoon's punch flowed seamlessly into another, striking Altio's side with precision.

"Gah!"

What power...

Altio felt his mind go blank from the sheer force of the blow, which left him temporarily unable to think.

Thwack!

Jeong-hoon's fist connected with Altio's face this time.

"Urgh!"

Blood splattered through the air from the heavy impact.

What the hell is this?!

Altio struggled to accept the reality unfolding before him.

Every trainee he'd ever faced had been unworthy.

Even those who showed promise couldn't match him.

'Why?!'

Despite having a higher level and more experience,

Altio couldn't counter Jeong-hoon's relentless assault.

'Damn it!'

Altio clenched his teeth, refusing to lose without a fight.

He swung his fist at Jeong-hoon, the sleeve of his uniform making a sharp sound through the air.

But Jeong-hoon easily evaded it, sidestepping and countering with a knee strike.

Again, Jeong-hoon dodged effortlessly and landed another blow on Altio's side.

"Guh!"

Altio dropped to one knee, groaning in pain.

"I think that's enough."

Jeong-hoon said, lowering his fist.

"...Indeed."

Altio admitted defeat gracefully.

Continuing would only bring disgrace.

Despite Jeong-hoon's lower level, his martial prowess was undeniably superior.

"Take my hand."

Jeong-hoon extended his hand to help Altio up.

"Thank you."

As Altio stood, the question mark above his head turned into an exclamation mark, indicating the quest's completion.

The instructors and players who had witnessed the sparring match were stunned into silence.

"Wow... He defeated the instructor?"

"Isn't that insane? He's level 11, and the instructor is level 30. How did he win?"

"It wasn't just a win; he completely overwhelmed him."

The spectators agreed that Jeong-hoon's victory was absolute.

Every attack he launched was on target, while Altio's attacks missed entirely.

"A 19-level difference... How is that possible?"

"Isn't he faking his level? Even a small level difference is noticeable."

In New World, levels were absolute.

Higher levels meant better stats, and the difference was significant.

This was why players focused so intensely on leveling up.

Many came to the Hall of Martial Arts not just for skills but to gain experience and level up, eventually advancing to their first class change.

"I recorded the whole thing. I'm posting this on Welcome."

Welcome was a community forum created by New World players.

"Me too! I want to know how he won with such a level gap."

Players could record and share videos using a built-in system, making the guides on Welcome easy to follow.

"Alright, everyone, focus!"

"We're starting training!"

The other instructors quickly tried to regain control.

They hadn't been defeated themselves, but seeing Altio lose was a blow to their pride.

They needed to shift the focus away from his loss.

'Altio lost so easily...'

'I can't believe it.'

'He's the strongest among us. How...?'

'Is he a monster? He looked like he was going to collapse, yet he took down Altio?'

They were as confused as the players.

Pushik—

The capsule opened, and Kang Ha-jin emerged.

"That guy must be having a blast."

The capsule next to his showed no signs of opening, even after several hours.

That was Jeong-hoon's capsule.

Since entering the capsule room, Jeong-hoon had spent 20 hours a day in the capsule, only taking a 4-hour break.

Even in a virtual reality game, physical exhaustion couldn't be completely avoided.

Proper rest was necessary, but Jeong-hoon seemed in a hurry, practically living in the capsule.

"Maybe I should drag him out by force?"

[Whisper/zlJohnHaJin12 ➛ Hoon: Hey, let's go home and have some pork belly.]

[Whisper/Hoon ➛ zlJohnHaJin12: Sorry, I'm busy right now. Let's eat together later.]

Given Jeong-hoon's recent whisper, there was no chance he would come out willingly.

Ha-jin cleaned up his capsule and left the room.

Outside, the capsule room owner, Lee Hyun-woo, was smoking a cigarette.

"Hey, Ha-jin. Why are you done so early today?"

Lee Hyun-woo greeted him as he approached.

"Failed a raid. I'm feeling down, so I'm calling it a day."

"Really? What about your friend?"

"He's still going strong."

Ha-jin gestured toward the capsule room as he pulled out a cigarette.

"If he keeps it up, he might need his own capsule."

Capsule rooms cost 5,000 won per hour.

Jeong-hoon was spending nearly 100,000 won a day just on capsule usage.

No matter how much savings he had, he wouldn't last two months at this rate.

People often bought their own capsules because, in the long run, it was more economical.

"Yeah, but capsules are expensive."

That was a luxury they couldn't afford.

The cheapest models were around 20 million won, with high-end models nearing 90 million won.

"Well, what about this?"

Lee Hyun-woo handed him a flyer.

"What's this?"

"Do you know Genesis Corporation?"

"Yes. They specialize in making capsules."

Genesis, which specialized in capsule manufacturing, had its stock prices closely tied to Earth, the developer of New World.

"Genesis is hosting an event for beginner players."

"Really? A 30 million won capsule for first place? Wow..."

Capsules above the basic model sold for around 30 million won.

"Exactly. So why not give it a shot?"

"Still, first place seems impossible."

The event was open to players below level 50.

Even if Jeong-hoon played 20 hours a day, reaching level 30 would be tough.

Competing against players in the 40-50 level range made first place unlikely.

"Just ask him. Even participating gives beginner players useful items."

Even participation offered items that would help in New World, making it worth entering.

"That's true... The starter items are nice."

Ideally, he would help Jeong-hoon level up directly, but with their level gap, any assistance would be flagged as abnormal gameplay and penalized.

Jeong-hoon needed to reach at least level 100 to receive help.

In the meantime, the Genesis event items would be beneficial.

Ha-jin decided to inform Jeong-hoon about the event and headed back into the capsule room.

[Epic Quest Completed.]

[You have acquired '[Title] Acknowledged by the Instructor'.]

[Achievement Unlocked! 'First to Complete an Epic Quest!' Achievement Points: 5,000.]

[Achievement Points: 15,000.]

[Achievement Shop Unlocked.]

Perfect. Not only did he get the necessary materials, but completing the first epic quest earned him enough points to unlock the shop. Achieving this before even advancing to the first class was unexpected.

'This is a good start.'

Moreover, he had earned the title of Honorary Trainee of the Hall of Martial Arts.

[Acknowledged by the Instructor]

- Type: Unique Title

- Grade: Rare

- Increases the effectiveness of Martial Artist passive skills by 3%.

- Increases the effectiveness of Martial Artist active skills by 3%.

Although a rare grade, it was a unique title only obtainable by defeating Altio for the first time.

The 3% increase might seem small, but it stacked and was crucial for later use as a material.

'I was aiming for the materials anyway.'

There were many things he couldn't achieve before due to unmet conditions.

Now, he had already secured two previously unattainable rewards.

The results were highly satisfying.

[Whisper/zlJohnHaJin12 ➛ Hoon: Hey, what are you doing?]

A whisper from Ha-jin.

[Whisper/Hoon ➛ zlJohnHaJin12: Doing a quest at the Hall of Martial Arts.]

[Whisper/zlJohnHaJin12 ➛ Hoon: I have some great news.]

[Whisper/Hoon ➛ zlJohnHaJin12: Great news?]

[Whisper/zlJohnHaJin12 ➛ Hoon: There's an event for beginner players with a capsule as the prize!]