# Maxed-Out Talent Player Episode 27

My sister also got off the bus with me.

“Are you getting off too, sis?”

“Yeah, just for a walk. I’ll go on foot.”

“Got it.”

As my sister slowly walked away for her stroll, I quickened my pace towards Shin Yeon-seo.

‘She does look quite young.’

Back when Shin Yeon-seo was in her prime – that is, in 2028 – she looked quite different. The 20-year-old Sword Queen Shin Yeon-seo, aside from her notable cuteness and pretty features, which made her stand out anywhere, was not that particularly remarkable.

‘A tennis skirt?’

She was wearing clothes that were much too cute to imagine on the Sword Queen of 2028 – a pale yellow t-shirt with a heart design and a white tennis skirt. She also carried an ivory-colored eco bag, not unlike any other college student.

‘Cute.’

She looked a couple of years younger than me, even though we were the same age. The famous Sword Queen, who swept the battlefields during the ‘Maldives Battle,’ was not present here.

‘Sense Eye.’

──────────

[Player]

Name: Shin Yeon-seo

Age: 20

Level: 19

Class: –

Guardian: –

Unique Ability: [One-Hit Kill]

Status: Curious/Fearful/Amused

Disposition: Exploratory/Challenging/Positive

Summary:

1) An innocent woman easily falls in love, with two faces.

+ No class selected.

+ No guardian selected.

+ Disposition and characteristics/summary are indicative and subject to change with the situation.

+ Low proficiency in Sense Eye, unable to access detailed information.

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‘Impressive.’

Already at level 19 and with a unique ability to boast.

‘Just like someone not of extraordinary talent.’

Matching the rapid growth rate of the King of Fists, Ma Sang-hyun. ‘Play’ definitely demands talent. Pure effort alone cannot place one at the summit. There’s already a clear distinction from ordinary players, even from the lower levels. The level tells the story.

‘The summary is a bit puzzling, though.’

An innocent woman easily falls in love who has two faces? It was confusing, a term hardly used based on the 2028 standard, but I remembered its meaning. It means she falls in love easily.

Shin Yeon-seo’s voice reached me.

“Can I go inside?”

She seemed to be contemplating whether to enter or not, and it appeared as though she was discussing it with an invisible ‘intermediate manager.’

‘It’s the gate that the Sword Queen has cleared.’

Gates, like dungeons, share similar attributes. If not cleared on time, the gate collapses, and monsters spill out from within.

‘Well, shouldn’t be too hard.’

Already having cleared the ‘Seoul Station Dungeon,’ gates are comparatively easier. That’s conventionally established. Their internal structures are simple, and the clear conditions are not that complicated.

I spoke to Shin Yeon-seo first.

“Are you trying to enter here?”

“Ah, hello!”

Shin Yeon-seo greeted me with a bright disposition. As she bowed in greeting, her hair swished softly. Even though we had only exchanged greetings, she already seemed very lively.

“Do you… do you know about this?”

“This is a gate. Monster will burst out if it’s not cleared in time.”

“I heard that from the middle manager, but… is it really true?”

It’s true. The ‘Seoul Station Dungeon’ should have had several breaks by now. It only hasn’t because I cleared it.

The breaks are inevitable.

‘Eventually centers will burst out from the gates everywhere.’

I can’t cover every gate and dungeon all by myself. Shin Yeon-seo asked me.

“What level are you?”

I shrugged. The ‘ranking board’ wasn’t activated just yet.

‘Oh right.’

I needed to change the settings before the ranking board was activated. If I didn’t change them in advance, my information could be accessed.

‘Settings.’

[Activating settings window.]

‘Disable information disclosure.’

[Your player information will be switched to private.]

For now, I didn’t exist in the past. Considering that my existence could create some butterfly effect, I kept my information private. At least for now.

“19.”

“Really?”

Shin Yeon-seo’s eyes widened in surprise. Her expressions were dynamic and varied, and the way she blinked was almost rabbit-like.

“The intermediate manager said that my leveling speed is incredible. He said I might be the fastest…”

“What level are you?”

“I’m also level 19! Wow. There’s someone else like me? That’s amazing!”

The way she praised herself without arrogance didn’t seem annoying.

“Well, I was planning to go inside here.”

“Is, is it okay?”

She wasn’t yet the Sword Queen, Shin Yeon-seo, just a regular college student.

‘Of course it’s okay.’

According to the records, Shin Yeon-seo cleared it by herself. It shouldn’t be that hard.

“It should be fine. The dungeon was cleared after all.”

“That, that was because the Tutorial Conqueror was there…”

Even that great Tutorial Conqueror, Ma Sang-hyun, wouldn’t stand a chance against her in one-on-one. I felt like telling her just that. Watching Shin Yeon-seo get nervous at the sight of a gate in a beginner’s zone, I felt a different kind of amusement.

“Maybe we could form a party.”

That’s when Senia appeared. It seemed she found out that I was playing through Shin Yeon-seo’s BJ connection.

“You’re late.”

“……”

I took my time on purpose. After all, while playing, if I could make an impression on the guardians and get their support, that’d be beneficial.

‘And there are already two BJs here.’

Although I could only see Senia, Shin Yeon-seo’s BJ ‘Roar’ was definitely with us as well. ‘Roar’ would later become a very famous BJ.

Several influential guardians sponsored her. In other words, some of the guardians who supported the Sword Queen might also take an interest in me.

“Wow. Bro, but you speak informally to the middle manager?”

“……”

“Amazing.”

Hey, we are the same age. Why are you calling me ‘Bro’? Do you call someone a ‘Bro’ without asking their age first?

“I’m 20.”

Of course, inside I was nearing an age where I should start behaving like an adult, but officially, I am 20.

“Oh, really? I thought you were obviously older than me.”

Shin Yeon-seo smiled brightly. That eye smile that had led hordes of men to suffer ‘Sword Queen Fever.’ Seeing it in person, I could understand why they were taken aback. Looking at her smiling face, the world seemed to brighten. At least on the surface.

‘So that’s why [Two Faces]…’

The ordinary Sword Queen. And the Sword Queen in battle. They were said to be completely different people. I hadn’t seen her fight yet, but judging from the summary, it appeared to be almost a split personality.

Now that she knew we were the same age, Shin Yeon-seo became more active.

“I’ll send the party request! I wanted to try going in too.”

* * *

Kim Ah-young got off the bus. She stopped by a convenience store nearby and tucked a piece of chocolate into her bag before leaving.

“Uh…?”

Suddenly, the sky appeared to turn yellow for Kim Ah-young. She reached out on the spot. Far away, she saw her brother swallowed up by a row of trees as he was talking to a girl.

Thunk!

Her bag dropped to the ground.

‘No, this can’t be happening.’

She remembered that day – April 28, 2018, in Jongno. Her brother miraculously came back from that place. Since then, the world had changed strangely. Monsters appeared, and middle managers who killed people emerged. Her brother seemed to have been sucked into some strange place again. She stood in front of the trees.

‘Where did you go?’

Come out and stop playing around. Her heart sank. He had disappeared once again. For Kim Ah-young, who knew nothing, it was an inevitable reaction. She went pale. That week when her brother had gone missing. During the 7-day tutorial period, she couldn’t manage even a single spoonful of rice.

“Where did you go, you crazy?”

Kim Ah-young leaned against the tree. Collapsing against it, she couldn’t muster any strength. Her body was drained of energy. She mumbled blankly.

“I’m going to kill you when you get home.”

Nothing came to mind. She just sat there.

“I won’t give you the chocolate, you bad boy.”

She had just bought her brother’s favorite chocolate. She planned to throw it carelessly onto his bed, but now she didn’t want to give it to him. She tried calling several times, but she only got the ‘the call cannot be taken’ automated message.

‘Please. I hope nothing happened.’

Leaning against the tree, she cried. As time passed, ‘The Play’ inherently required immense talent for Kim Hyuk-jin, but not every detail required the same care. He had entered the gate with Shin Yeon-seo.

Kim Hyuk-jin commented,

“Seems like gates have a much simpler structure compared to dungeons.”

His words were meant for Shin Yeon-seo but were also directed towards any guardians who might be watching the scene.

Shin Yeon-seo asked with a bright smile,

“How about we speak informally since we’re the same age?”

“……”

After Kim Hyuk-jin looked at her, she seemed embarrassed as her ears tinted red and giggled sheepishly. Many people described it as ‘the smile that’s unfairly charming’ and now Kim Hyuk-jin could see, through his eyes, why.

“Yeah?”

“Let’s speak informally then, but only if we survive this place.”

Upon hearing that, Shin Yeon-seo’s face stiffened a little. Even for her, Jongno was a horrendous place. Despite her natural talent allowing her to adapt quickly to ‘Play,’ she wasn’t completely free from fear yet. She needed more time for perfect adaptation. It’s not that Shin Yeon-seo was lacking; it was Kim Hyuk-jin who was unique and strange.

Meanwhile, Shin Yeon-seo’s middle manager, Roa, whispered to Senia,

-Excuse me, Senia. What’s the deal with that player? He says he’s level 19.

-They’ve set their profile to private.

It was still the beginning of ‘Play.’ Though the rivalry between BJs hadn’t intensified yet, the scramble for good content began.

-Ah, why is that? Did you explain to them the difference between a dungeon and a gate?

-……

-Otherwise, it’s impossible to understand the difference between a gate and a dungeon so quickly. A player of that level can’t have such intuition, right?

-……

-You know you shouldn’t get too involved in ‘Play’.

-I have not acted contrary to the laws, so don’t worry about it.

Senia was actually more curious. How did Kim Hyuk-jin figure out the difference between a gate and a dungeon? She had never taught him that. Roa seemed to sense a ‘jackpot.’

-I will broadcast that player as well. Honestly, it doesn’t matter who I broadcast, but I felt I should let you know as a courtesy.

-That’s not possible.

-Why?

Senia glanced at Roa for a moment. Still expressionless, Roa could sense a subtle confidence in Senia’s demeanor. It was a confidence that seemed like a sense of superiority. The source of that superiority was confirmed through Senia’s words.

-The player Kim Hyuk-jin already signed an exclusive contract with me.

-What? Exclusive contract?

Roa looked at Senia incredulously. An exclusive contract could only be made with three players.

-Have you already sealed one? Wow? You can only do it three times?

And they’ve already used one? Although Kim Hyuk-jin seemed promising, it was still too early to be certain.

-There’s a high possibility that he’s just a flash-in-the-pan player at this stage… And you’ve already used one?

-It’s none of your concern.

Senia ended the conversation there.

[Unnamed guardians have entered channel #19207.]

More guardians from Roa’s channel switched over to Senia’s channel. The guardians were also interested in ‘Player Kim Hyuk-jin.’

Meanwhile, Kim Hyuk-jin moved.

“Over here. Until the green line, it’s a safe zone.”

“Okay. Safe zone. Got it.”

Shin Yeon-seo nodded with the enthusiasm of a grade-schooler learning something fun. Kim Hyuk-jin walked up to the edge of the green line.

[Leaving the safe zone.]

[Entered spontaneous gate – ‘Tunnel’.]

The name of this gate.

‘Tunnel, huh.’

It didn’t seem particularly dangerous.

‘Let’s check it out.’

He looked back. The door through which they had entered still existed.

‘No escape impossible setting, check.’

If it gets too perilous, we can flee. It didn’t seem like a very challenging place. This ‘Tunnel’ was a vast, open field.

[Monsters will be generated.]

As the announcement about the monsters came, the space around them began to flicker.

‘Huh?’

But then, something unexpected happened.

‘Is that really coming out here?’