Player Headquarters.

In the Talent Management Team’s office, employee Yoo Ji-ah looked at Park Chang-seok with concern.

The normally confident man was slumped in a plush chair, looking unusually dejected.

“Are you alright, Representative?”

Despite her question, all she received was:

“Puuuuuuh.”

A long, deep sigh from Park Chang-seok.

Yoo Ji-ah was smart, one of the elites at headquarters.

She didn’t need him to explain—she could already guess the reason.

‘This all started after he met with Representative Im Hee-su.’

It had been about four days ago.

Park Chang-seok had stormed out, furious and saying he would settle things once and for all, but came back looking like this.

‘There’s no solution for this.’

Park Chang-seok was usually a very resolute man, respected by all the staff and known as the “Yaksha of Headquarters.”

But.

‘Baek Jin-woo…’

Ever since he started helping that player, he’d developed several weak spots.

“Is this because of Baek Jin-woo? Did Representative Im Hee-su ask you to return the lower-grade summoning books? Should I have a word with my grandfather?”

“…”

Park Chang-seok gave her a long look.

Employee Yoo Ji-ah.

Twenty-eight years old.

A talented young professional, but with an incredible background.

‘The fourth granddaughter of Yoo Byung-cheon, the founder of Daeseong Group, the top conglomerate in South Korea.’

While not directly involved in the company’s management, she was showered with her grandfather’s love, thanks to her beauty.

The reason she was such an elite was simple: she had been supported by Daeseong and received all sorts of top-tier education only available to the wealthy.

But ever since the world changed, Yoo Ji-ah had taken a deep interest in players.

Her reason for joining headquarters was because of that.

“I appreciate the offer.”

Park Chang-seok smiled faintly.

“But this is my choice, and I won’t lean on corporate power just because things got messy.”

“You’re right.”

“Huh?”

Surprised by how quickly Yoo Ji-ah agreed, Park Chang-seok widened his eyes.

What? Was she just saying that?

“Of course, I was joking. I just wanted to cheer you up.”

“…What?”

“My grandfather hates it when people rely on the family’s power when they could solve things on their own.”

Hah.

So that’s the mindset of a conglomerate founder?

Even Park Chang-seok couldn’t help but agree with that way of thinking.

“The lower-grade summoning book issue has already been resolved.”

“Really?”

“That wasn’t a major problem to begin with. I had full authority over that.”

“Then why the gloomy expression…?”

“It’s Im Hee-su, that bastard. He keeps provoking me.”

Park Chang-seok thought back to earlier.

His rival, Representative Im Hee-su.

What he targeted was none other than the <Talent Management Team>.

– What’s the point of a Talent Management Team if they can’t even foster real talent? Are you just wasting headquarters’ budget? You’re not planning to develop those rankers you’re keeping around, are you? You know, those players who couldn’t even make it to the national selection. Hah, why don’t you just hand over that talent management budget to me?

He picked the most infuriating words possible.

But there was nothing Park Chang-seok could say back.

Im Hee-su’s rankers had been selected for the national team several times and had achieved numerous meaningful accomplishments.

As annoying as it was, the man was talented.

– Don’t tell me you’re puffing up your chest just because you broke the lower-tier Tuesday Dungeon record. Representative Park, you should stick to fighting gangs. Don’t waste your time trying to train talent when it’s clearly not your thing.

Grit.

Park Chang-seok ground his teeth.

Though he was calm and collected most of the time, he also had a fiery side.

In the end, he couldn’t hold back and burst out.

Right in front of the director.

– What if the talent I’ve been nurturing makes it to the national team? What will you do then?

Seeing the mocking laugh on Im Hee-su’s face made it impossible for him to stop.

– How about a bet? Will any of my rankers make it to the national team?

The year-end World League.

Only ten players from each country could participate.

– How about we even bet on who ranks higher?

– Oh? Are you serious? What’s the wager?

Im Hee-su smirked.

Naturally, none of Park Chang-seok’s players had ever made it to the national team.

On the other hand, last year alone, Im Hee-su had two of his players on the team.

That was a remarkable achievement.

Not only headquarters rankers competed, but top-tier guild rankers also fought for a spot.

– How about the loser voluntarily steps down and admits that the other representative is superior to the public? What do you think?

– You’ve lost your mind. Are you serious?

– Yes. And if you break the bet, the penalty is 1 billion won. Feel free to write up the contract.

The tension in the director’s office was thick.

– Now, now, gentlemen. Calm down. Why are you getting so worked up?

The director, whom Park Chang-seok called a “has-been,” was sweating as he tried to intervene, but neither representative was listening.

Their pride was on the line.

In the end, they wrote and signed the contract right there.

Just as they had discussed.

“So, I made the bet in a fit of anger.”

“…That’s absurd!”

After hearing the story, Yoo Ji-ah was stunned.

What kind of bet was that?

And to think they had almost no chance of winning… it was practically zero!

“Don’t tell me.”

Yoo Ji-ah asked, her face full of doubt.

“Are you relying on Baek Jin-woo?”

“I am.”

That was precisely why Park Chang-seok was sighing.

Baek Jin-woo wasn’t fully grown yet.

He didn’t even know if Baek Jin-woo would continue to side with him, yet here he was, rushing into a bet.

This wasn’t like him at all.

‘Or maybe this is exactly like me?’

Right.

Someone so invested in Baek Jin-woo, pouring everything into him, couldn’t really be called calm.

“Yes, his progress has been impressive, but he’s just an ordinary gamer. He might have potential, but he’s still far from being able to compete with rankers.”

“I know, I know.”

Puuuh!

Another sigh escaped from Park Chang-seok.

“But do you know what else?”

“What?”

“My eye for talent is pretty sharp.”

“…”

Yoo Ji-ah pressed her lips together.

Secretary Kim Byung-jin, herself, and Hwang Tae-seop—all were people handpicked by Park Chang-seok.

The other representatives at headquarters envied his ability to recognize talent.

“I trust Baek Jin-woo. If we give him the right support, he’ll keep delivering valuable information.”

“…Sigh, alright.”

Yoo Ji-ah sighed and shook her head as she turned away.

At that moment.

“Representative! Representative!”

The door burst open as Kim Byung-jin, the secretary, rushed in.

“You told me to look into the player who’s been clearing dozens of D-rank dungeons solo at lightning speed, right?”

“I did.”

“That player is Baek Jin-woo.”

“What?”

Thunk.

Park Chang-seok shot up from his seat.

Yoo Ji-ah’s eyes also widened slightly.

“Baek Jin-woo? Are you serious?”

Could it be true?

A player who had only been registered for just over a month, clearing D-rank dungeons solo?

And the average clear time was less than 5 minutes.

This was an unbelievable rate of progress, a clear indication of the massive amount of information Baek Jin-woo must have.

“See, what did I say?”

Park Chang-seok smiled as he looked at Yoo Ji-ah.

“I told you Baek Jin-woo is the best.”

The best?

Yoo Ji-ah pouted.

Who even says “the best” anymore?

* * *

At that same moment.

“Hehehe.”

Baek Jin-woo couldn’t suppress the smile spreading across his face.

[Account Details]

[Account Holder: Baek Jin-woo]

[Preferred Account]

[Available Balance: 26,002,500 won]

It had only been four days.

In four days, Baek Jin-woo had cleared 160 D-rank dungeons.

As a result, he had earned roughly 16 million won.

This was from selling all the ‘Mid-tier Summoning Books’ that had dropped at around a 20% rate.

“This world is made for me.”

He planned to reinvest most of the money in his summons.

But before that.

Baek Jin-woo decided to split his account into four.

1. Living Expenses Account.
2. Family Account.
3. Savings Account.
4. Player Account.

First, he deposited 5 million won into the living expenses account.

‘I’ll always keep 500 in the living expenses account.’

Whenever rent, utilities, food costs, or cream buns depleted the balance, he would top it back up to 500,000 at the start of every month.

‘Next, the family account.’

He also deposited 5 million won there.

‘500,000 won every month.’

This was for his family.

He planned to save it up and then spend it generously on his parents and his sister, Baek Ah-jin.

‘And the savings account.’

He planned to put 10 million won in there each month.

To shorten it—monthly savings of a million won!

This was an otherworldly amount for Baek Jin-woo.

In the past, when he was working part-time jobs, it was an unattainable figure.

But for the current Baek Jin-woo, it was easily achievable.

The money in the savings account would be reserved for his future and himself.

‘Finally, the player account.’

His current preferred account.

He would spend all the money here on his summons.

Runes, refinement materials, summoning books, ingredients, skill books, and so on.

‘The most important thing is the value of the player.’

Money?

Once he became the best in the world, money would naturally flow to him.

Now wasn’t the time to obsess over saving.

Anyway.

While grinding through dungeons, his summons had grown significantly.

Lamba, Hun-gyo, and Explosive Dragon.

They had all surpassed level 30.

This was an incredible achievement.

It was a level that would have been impossible to reach through the Synthesis Station alone.

However, to surpass level 40, he would have to grind dozens of times more.

The higher the level, the exponentially more experience was required.

‘It’s time to start getting runes and upgrades.’

To do that?

He would need to run the Day of the Week Dungeons.

More specifically.

He needed to raise summons that could clear those dungeons.

‘A player can form up to three teams.’

In the past, JinuGod had used the three teams like this:

1. For the Player
2. For PvP
3. For Day of the Week Dungeons

‘First, the player team.’

This was the team that followed the player around, like the ones Baek Jin-woo used now.

They typically ran general dungeons or tackled the Tower of Trials.

In the case of the Tower of Trials, you had to change summons depending on the floor’s concept, so the team setup would change frequently.

‘Next, the PvP team.’

This was, as the name suggested, for player-versus-player battles.

With so many different kinds of summons, some were specifically suited for PvP, like assassins.

Baek Jin-woo had placed his PvP-oriented summons in Team 2.

‘Lastly, the Day of the Week Dungeon team.’

Each day of the week had a different concept.

The key to this team was that they could run these dungeons on auto-battle, meaning Baek Jin-woo could set them to farm endlessly without his input.

Also.

There were Core Units for each day of the week.

These were the key units that could clear the dungeons quickly!

For example, the “Blotched Komodo” (B-rank) was the core unit for the Tuesday Dungeon.

In Baek Jin-woo’s mind, he already had all the core units for the D, C, and B ranks of each day of the week mapped out.

‘Now I need to start finding them.’

He was going to set up a team that could farm the Day of the Week Dungeons as fast as possible!

After forming the team?

He would have Hun-gyo train them intensively.

But that wasn’t all.

He would unlock their potential and push their speed to the absolute limit.

‘I’ll start by doing a time attack on the lower-tier Day of the Week Dungeons.’

Once he built a team that could clear the highest difficulty of all the Day of the Week Dungeons in under a minute, his growth would accelerate at an unimaginable rate.

‘First.’

[Account Details]

[Account Holder: Baek Jin-woo]

[Preferred Account]

[Available Balance: 6,002,500 won]

After splitting the accounts according to his plan, exactly 6 million won remained.

‘I don’t know if this is enough to buy new summons, but let’s see.’

Baek Jin-woo opened the [Player Web] and headed straight to the “Marketplace” tab.