As he followed the staff into the waiting room, he saw a familiar bearded man.

Park Chang-seok, the current investigator from headquarters.

He began to speak cautiously.

"You were a bit surprised, weren't you?"

"Well, yes."

Baek Jin-woo nodded.

"I knew you were from HQ, but I had no idea you were an examiner."

At a signal from the bearded man, the staff bowed their heads and left the room.

Now only the two of them were left in the waiting room.

Park Chang-seok.

And Baek Jin-woo.

"The reason I called you here, Mr Jin-woo, is none other than to assess your reward."

"Ah."

A reward!

Baek Jin-woo's eyes widened.

"When we checked your identity, we confirmed that you were indeed an unregistered player. Moreover, you even applied for registration and you're not listed in any gang records... Of course, you should receive a reward."

"Yes, that sounds good."

Baek Jin-woo swallowed.

This guy seemed to have a pretty high position in the headquarters.

What kind of reward could he offer?

"Before I talk about the reward, I'd like to ask you something."

"Yes?"

Baek Jin-woo blinked.

"Mr. Jin-woo... Were you by any chance a player?"

He had thought about this countless times.

How could someone who had been bedridden in a hospital for three years know so much about summoned creatures?

Unless he was a gamer, it didn't make sense.

"A gamer?"

"We use that term for people who used to play the game called Battle of Summoners War."

"Ah."

Baek Jin-woo's mind quickly processed the situation.

He had been expecting this since he stepped forward.

Of course, they would find it strange.

"Well, yes... I played it."

"I thought so. May I ask how long...?"

"Hmm."

How should he answer?

If he said ten years, that might be too specific.

In the days of One Heaven, there were less than 200 people in the world playing this game.

As mentioned before, Baek Jin-woo had no desire to reveal himself.

Even if he did, it would only be after he had achieved a certain level of security.

"I just tried it. For about a year...?"

"What?! Really?!"

Suddenly, Park Chang-seok, overwhelmed with emotion, grabbed both of Baek Jin-woo's hands.

"You mean to tell me... you actually played that crappy game for a whole year?"

"Uh..."

What?

"Well, yes, I did."

That comment was a bit insulting, wasn't it?

Baek Jin-woo knew that Battle of Summoners was a dead game, but it was a game he had staked his life on.

It was basically his whole world, and he didn't appreciate hearing it called a "shitty game".

Of course, regardless of Baek Jin-woo's feelings, Park Chang-seok was getting more and more excited.

"A year?!"

Most ranked players in Korea couldn't last more than six months in this game.

There were a few who had played for over a year, but they had all been knocked out early on.

He's definitely talented. To stay in this boring game for a year means that he must have really immersed himself in it... That explains how he knew about the Flame Resistance skill.

Rankers always said the same thing.

Anyone who played that godforsaken game for over a year couldn't possibly be sane.

If you found someone that crazy, the government should do everything to recruit him.

Park Chang-seok's heart raced.

Could he be lying?

It seemed unlikely.

This guy had only been conscious for two days - would he really lie about playing for a year just to win favour?

If he did, that would be commendable in its own way.

It would mean he was sharp.

"First, I'm going to give you two options for your reward. You can choose one of them."

"Yes."

"First."

The bearded man raised a finger.

"I will use my authority to register you as a player immediately. I'll also offer you a position at the headquarters."

It was an extremely generous offer.

Not only would he get one of the coveted player slots, of which only 50 were given out each month, but he would also be entering the headquarters, which had a recruitment process even more rigorous than that of large corporations!

Of course, this was only Park Chang-seok's perspective.

"And the second option?"

Baek Jin-woo replied with an indifferent expression.

You want to tie me to the headquarters?

A heavenly JinuGod.

Baek Jin-woo knew his value better than anyone else.

When the Five Emperors below him were recognised as national level players, there was nothing more to say.

"The second option is cash."

"How much?"

"A reward of 5 million won. It's a bit low, but that's due to internal regulations..."

"Sounds good. I'll take the money."

With that money, he could buy quite a few summoning scrolls.

"What?"

Park Chang-seok looked at him incredulously.

There were countless wealthy people willing to bribe their way into player registration, spending millions in the process...

And he was turning down the opportunity so easily? For just 5 million?

"I can register as a player on my own. I have no intention of joining the HQ."

"Please reconsider. Even with your knowledge of the game, registering as a player can take a long time."

"I appreciate your concern, but I'm fine."

Baek Jin-woo was determined.

What he needed now was growth.

Especially considering his three-year absence, he had to move fast.

Wasting time by joining some organisation was out of the question.

This isn't going as expected.

Park Chang-seok scratched his head and looked worried.

But there wasn't much he could do about it.

If Baek Jin-woo didn't want it, that was that.

In truth, the first offer was Park's own decision.

The second offer had come from his superiors.

Fine.

He might as well see for himself.

See how skilled this 1-year player really was.

"Alright. The deposit will be made by the end of the day."

"Straightforward. I like it, thank you."

* * *

The training progressed quickly.

There were lectures by university professors and professional players, and a written exam soon followed.

The exam was based on the lectures, but there were also quite challenging questions from the textbook.

It couldn't be helped.

It was a competition based on relative judgement.

"What do you think?"

Park Chang-seok asked the professors.

He asked about Baek Jin-woo.

"He's incredible. I have no other words. I can't believe there was such a candidate!"

The professors looked at Baek Jin-woo's answers in awe.

Park Chang-seok was astonished.

Had he ever seen these proud and rigid professors make such expressions before?

"Ahem. After looking at this answer sheet, I realised how narrow my understanding of the runes was.

"Hmph... I've always stuck to attack speed runes, simply because they provide good efficiency for summoned creatures. Now I'm ashamed of my narrow thinking. Who would have thought there was another way?"

"The idea that runes should be flexible, and that the strength of a summoned creature is directly related to the strength of its runes...! This answer captures the essence of what Baekcheon, the hero of Taiwan, has always emphasised!"

Wow.

Was Baek Jin-woo really that good?

"Of course, you can see the lack of practical experience in some parts of the answers, but theoretically they're flawless."

"Lack of experience?"

"Yes. There are a few instances where he cited unlikely cases and then described how to deal with them... But these are purely hypothetical situations. This candidate was a gambler, right?"

"Yes, for about a year."

"I'm looking forward to it. His understanding of summoned creatures and runes is completely different from the other candidates. If trained well, he could become a Ranker."

Compliments continued to pour out of the professors' mouths.

Hoo!

The more they praised him, the more anxious Park Chang-seok became.

He remembered how firmly Baek Jin-woo had rejected the offer to join the headquarters.

Should I have offered better terms?

***

After the written test came the practical test in a dungeon.

The dungeon was located in the player zone and was a "Day Dungeon".

Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

Each dungeon had its own theme, and the materials you could acquire varied depending on the day.

For this practical exam, they were in the Tuesday dungeon, where you could find rune polishing agents.

Polishing agents are materials used to improve the options attached to runes.

"Candidate Baek Jin-woo?"

"Yes."

Baek Jin-woo, who had completed his team's setup, walked towards the dungeon.

A staff member from the headquarters who had been waiting at the entrance spoke up.

"The practical test is a time attack."

"You just want us to get through it as quickly as possible, right?"

"Yes. Since this is a low-level Tuesday dungeon, you'll only encounter slime. It won't be too difficult, although the layout is a bit complicated."

Of course, of course.

He had been through these day dungeons countless times over the past ten years.

Even the time attack records for day dungeons by difficulty were held by One Heaven (일천) JinuGod.

.

Of course, after the first few months, he hadn't bothered with low-level dungeons.

But low level or high level, it didn't matter.

The only difference was the strength of the monsters. The layout was always the same.

"You just need to clear the dungeon quickly, using whatever means necessary with your registered team!"

That part was a bit ambiguous.

There were applicants who had D-rank or even C-rank summoned creatures.

Against them, he would obviously be at a disadvantage.

What did the headquarters say?

- It's a relative evaluation, so there's nothing we can do about it!

Having strong summoned creatures is also considered a skill.

Even the wealth required to purchase these creatures is considered a form of skill.

Well, that's true.

But honestly, it didn't matter.

It was just a low-level Tuesday dungeon.

Low-level dungeons were so easy that the performance of your summoned creatures hardly mattered.

All you needed was for the player to quickly navigate the shortest route, and it would be cleared in no time.

Shall we start?

Baek Jin-woo was excited.

The god of time attacks!

Now he could show his movements to the world.

Nodding, he dove into the dungeon.

***

[Krreuk, Krreuk!]

[The room fills with poisonous slime]

[Eliminate the slime and escape the dungeon]

The Tuesday Dungeon was a labyrinth.

As you cleared room after room, defeating nearby slime with your summoned creatures, you would eventually reach the boss room.

"Lamba."

- Yes! I'm on my way!

Whoosh, whoosh!

Lamba swung her staff at the furry gorilla.

The Wind Fairy's attack speed stack began to accumulate as soon as they entered the dungeon.

- Rooaaarrr!

The Furry Gorilla let out a satisfying roar as he felt his speed increase.

"Forget the slime. Everyone, follow me."

As you might expect from a game as tough as Battle of Summoners, the mazes in Tuesday's dungeon were quite complex.

Some paths were deliberately twisted to frustrate the player, while others looped back to the starting point.

The maze was random.

But Baek Jin-woo, who had run through it countless times, knew better.

There are 21 different types of labyrinths.

Just by looking at the initial entrance, he could tell which type it was.

He hadn't consciously memorised them.

But after trying to clear them quickly every day, his body had learned to remember.

- Let's go!

With Lamba's call, Baek Jin-woo sprinted forward.

Slimes rushed at them, but no problem.

Since it was a low-level dungeon, they weren't a threat, and besides, they were slow.

He could just ignore them and pass them by.

The only thing he needed to kill was the giant slime.

Of course, the giant slime had quite a lot of health, so he would have to build up some stacks to defeat it in one shot.

- Hiyap! Hiyap!

That's why Lamba was swinging her staff so hard.

Tatadak!

Baek Jin-woo ran without hesitation.

He moved as if he had a map hack, navigating the maze with perfect precision, taking the shortest route at every turn.

About five minutes passed.

"There it is."

Between rooms, a narrow passage led to a large open area.

As he squeezed through the narrow space, a massive arena came into view.

And in the centre was something huge.

That was the boss of the Tuesday Dungeon.

The Giant Slime.