Chapter 15

“Seong Jihan, I got matched with Seong Jihan, it’s me!”

Streamer Golden Light pointed at Seong Jihan with his finger and rejoiced inwardly.

‘This is amazing!’

Their channel’s subscriber count had been stagnant recently, but they never expected to find such amazing story material in the Colosseum, and right next to them!

-Oh? Is that really Seong Jihan?

-Why is his equipment like that?

-Golden Light, kill that Seong Jihan brat right away!

-The members of the Swordking Clan are having another fit.

-Why is that traitor, who sided with the Japanese during the colonial era because of a woman, still clinging on? The Swordking Clan is a joke.

Chat messages poured in at least ten times faster than usual, focusing everyone’s attention on the scene.

Great.

When the tide comes in, one must row.

Golden Light waved his hand towards Seong Jihan.

“Mr. Seong Jihan! I’m a streamer, Golden Light! Can I interview you?”

Seong Jihan turned his head with an annoyed expression upon hearing his name called. He recognized the voice of the person talking to him, a man in golden armor trying to draw attention to himself by talking to the air and gesturing to his own appearance.

‘A streamer, huh? He’s not just streaming videos, but interacting with the viewers.’

Battle Tube streaming was common among Battle Net players. While it was less popular now due to the decline in interest from higher-ranked players, many players above the Silver rank still tried to gain popularity and GP by running Battle Tube alongside their gameplay.

‘But generally, they keep the chat off.’

Battle Net was where split-second decisions could turn the tide of battle. Trying to communicate with viewers in real-time could distract from important gameplay moments.

‘I might not keep the chat on once the game starts…’

Seong Jihan speculated that the streamer might turn off the chat when the game began to focus on his gameplay.

‘I should probably keep my playthrough on.’

Although he had no intention of engaging with viewers. However, while the audience’s attention was on him, he needed to boost his view count a bit more.

‘Besides, Seah needs to see my play.’

Thus, Seong Jihan changed his Battle Tube settings to live-stream his gameplay.

“Wow, that guy, he’s ignoring me, right?”

Golden Light looked at Seong Jihan, who was ignoring him, and appealed to the viewers.

Immediately, the chat exploded with comments.

-He’s not even looking?

-Wow, how rude!

-Golden Light-nim, I have a mission for you!

[User ‘SwordKingluv52’ has sent a viewer mission.]

[Kill player ‘Seong Jihan’ and make him come last.]

[Reward: 200 GP]

200 GP.

Since 1 GP was officially linked to 1 dollar, 200 GP amounted to about 200,000 KRW (Korean Won).

-Hey, Swordking Clan! We need to take down that arrogant brat!

-Everyone, let’s join forces and crush him!”

[User ‘SwordKingluv777’ has sent a viewer mission.]

[Kill player ‘Seong Jihan’ and make him come last.]

[Reward: 300 GP]

As one Swordking Clan member initiated the challenge, others quickly started contributing to the viewer missions.

In a matter of minutes, the reward for killing Seong Jihan had surpassed 10,000 GP.

Seeing this, the viewers were in an uproar.

-Goosebumps;

-The Swordking Clan’s firepower is impressive.

-They’re centered around the Swordking Clan leader. Even some big company CEOs are fans of Swordking.

-Wow… Just crossed 20,000 GP.

The rewards were rapidly increasing.

Streamer Golden Light burst into laughter.

‘This is incredible. Incredibleee!’

After Seong Jihan shattered Swordking’s Twin Sword emblem, he was well aware of the Swordking Clan’s hatred towards him…

‘But I didn’t expect them to be so eager to kill me, even pouring in GP like this.’

In reality, even if Seong Jihan were to die, he would only be de-leveled, nothing more. However, Swordking Clan’s grudge against him was so strong that they were willing to crowdfund for his demise.

‘It’s just money. I have plenty, too.’

But what was truly remarkable for this channel was the fact that so much GP was being bet on these missions.

Golden Light laughed heartily, waving his hands in excitement.

“Oh my, oh my. Sending me these missions! But let me tell you. I’m so scared of him~ Did you all see? Seong Jihan here shattered the emblem of Twin Sword with his ‘ki’. Do you think I stand a chance…?”

-The guy with all the A-rank gear is such a drama queen. LOL.

-Golden Light is revving up his motor, lol.

-Is 30,000 GP not enough for you?

-Is this really the channel for Swordking Clan?!

-Just press the GP button for the viewer mission!

Was it the middle-aged fans of Swordking flooding in?

[Reward: 30,000 GP]

[Reward: 40,000 GP]

…

The speed at which the GP was accumulating was no joke.

[All player summoning is complete.]

[The game is starting.]

‘Ah, it’s already starting!’

Just a little longer and it would have started.

The voice announcing the game’s start was almost disappointing.

‘If the mission goal wasn’t to make Seong Jihan come last, I could have toyed with him and then killed him.’

For Seong Jihan to come last, he needed to be the first among a hundred players to die.

Otherwise, Swordking Clan would have been able to torment him and gain support from their viewers.

‘Too bad, but there’s no helping it.’

Golden Light adjusted his tone and raised his voice in a broadcasting manner.

“Now then. Me, Golden Light! As scary as I am… thanks to all of your support! I’ll carry out the missions!”

-Kill him, kill him, kill him, kill him, kill him!!!!

-We need to make him last! Got it?

“Of course!”

In order to faithfully fulfill the viewers’ missions, Golden Light drew his golden sword.

“Charge!”

His charge skill, ‘Charge,’ was activated.

His body accelerated in an instant, rushing toward Seong Jihan.

“Mr. Seong Jihan! The harbinger of your game’s end has arrived. It’s none other than… streamer Golden Light, I’m talking about!”

And the tip of the golden sword extended straight toward Seong Jihan’s back.

-Oh well. It’s ending rather uneventfully.

-That’s right. Torture him a bit.-

It’s the last place mission, so there’s nothing we can do.

-But seriously, Golden Light. Can’t you refrain from using that line every time you kill?

-It’s his trademark, you know. Even if we curse at him, he just keeps on doing it.

-I’m freezing to death. I want to leave every time I hear that.

-For real, LOL.

As streamer Golden Light’s viewers were attempting to overcome the uninteresting content.

*Swoosh.*

Seong Jihan’s figure disappeared.

Golden Light’s sword pierced the air.

“Huh…?”

-What’s going on?

-Where is he!?

“Quite noisy for a surprise attack.”

A cold voice echoed in streamer Golden Light’s ears.

The source of the sound was right above, just above his head. When he looked up, Seong Jihan was leaping high in the air.

*Swish!*

A formidable iron staff cut through the air with terrifying speed.

A shiver ran down Golden Light’s spine as the staff’s tip approached his back.

*Clang!*

‘What kind of power…!’

Seong Jihan’s blow from the iron staff was blocked by the golden sword, but the immense shock reverberated through Golden Light’s entire body. If the golden sword weren’t an A-rank item, he might have been smashed to pieces.

“A fine sword.”

Seong Jihan briefly admired the gleaming golden sword before resuming his attack.

In his right hand, an iron staff; in his left, a massive kitchen knife. Though an unbalanced weapon combination, the flurry of strikes he unleashed was fearsome.

“Chit!”

Golden Light’s body had just recently been a Gold rank.

With his extensive combat experience, he did his best to defend against Seong Jihan’s attacks. However, the iron staff and the kitchen knife moved with almost lifelike freedom, pressuring Golden Light relentlessly.

‘What kind of unprecedented combination is this…!’

*Clang! Clang!*

Seong Jihan’s weapons struck against the golden armor.

The A-rank armor dented deeply from a single blow. Thankfully, it was an A-rank piece; had it been B-rank, Golden Light would likely have been killed by now.

A chill ran down Golden Light’s spine. In that brief clash, he could tell for sure.

Seong Jihan was no ordinary Bronze rank.

‘My stats should be superior!’

Golden Light’s golden armor set not only provided exceptional defense but also boosted his strength and agility stats. Up until now, he had tackled the deep sea exploration of the Bronze rank, relying on his skills and equipment to push forward.

However, nothing he tried had any effect against Seong Jihan.

“Ugh… I’ll take you on seriously from now on!”

-Ah, that’s a flag for defeat.

-???? Why is Seong Jihan so skilled in combat?

-The A-rank armor is warping. He’s supposed to be Bronze? Does that make sense?

-Yeah, it doesn’t make sense.

-Oh, seriously! A former Gold is getting pushed around by a Bronze!?

The chat was overwhelming, leaving Golden Light’s eyes spinning. Until now, he had been able to fight while keeping an eye on the chat, but facing Seong Jihan, he had no leisure to read the comments.

“I-I’ll turn off the chat!”

-Whoa, Golden Light even turned off the chat?

-Hey~ How rare is this serious mode?

“Now, I’ll face you with all my might, Seong Jihan!”

Golden Light’s resolve was firm, but suddenly, a gleaming white kitchen knife fell from the air.

“This is… ki Energy! Radiant white light, divine power!”

Golden Light hastily swung his sword.

He hadn’t even used a pot cover to mock his opponent!

*Clang!*

Then, out of nowhere, Seong Jihan’s iron staff intercepted Golden Light’s sword.

“…Huh?”

-Too much talking while fighting.

-Ah, I didn’t…

Golden Light’s last words trailed off.

Streamer Golden Light’s body was sliced in half, and his body gradually turned white.

A message appeared for all players within the Colosseum map:

[Player Seong Jihan has achieved the first kill.]

Even though Seong Jihan was known to be strong, nobody would have expected a former Gold-ranked player to be defeated so easily…

-Wait, how did this guy who descended from Gold get killed so easily?

-Seong Jihan, that guy. Watch out for him. Can’t win.

Players who had been observing their confrontation from afar abandoned any thoughts of targeting Seong Jihan. Even players armed with A-rank equipment couldn’t withstand a few rounds and were eliminated. It wasn’t worth attempting to challenge him.

Meanwhile, Seong Jihan achieved:

[First Kill in the Colosseum Map.]

[Achievement Points +100.]

“A hundred points for the first kill achievement?”

Although it was a decent number compared to his efforts, after recently accumulating achievement points through various broadcasts, it felt insignificant.

“Let’s aim for 10 kills in this survival.”

Seong Jihan concluded there was likely a point-based reward tied to the number of kills.

Since there was no separate reward for achieving 6 kills, reaching the round number of 10 kills might yield bonus achievement points.

“That aside…”

Seong Jihan silently watched the spot where streamer Golden Light had died.

He needed to find prey quickly and move efficiently to achieve his goal of 10 kills, but he stood still as if waiting for something.

And soon…

Flash. Flash.

From the same spot where streamer Golden Light had disappeared, white light burst forth again.

“Heh. Heh. Viewers, you now know that letting your guard down is a mistake, right? Seong Jihan! This time, I’ll definitely kill you…”

Streamer Golden Light, whose head had been split in half, revealed a relaxed smile as he reappeared.

Had he been communicating with viewers? He adopted his distinctive tone and was expressing his determination.

Standing behind him, Seong Jihan chuckled and responded to Golden Light’s determination.

“That’s right. Never let your guard down.”

“Huh?…Why are you still here?”

Golden Light’s previously relaxed expression rapidly turned grim.

-Wait, why isn’t this guy leaving yet and still waiting here?

-As expected, he used the Resurrection Cross.

‘How did I even know how to use this…?’

Golden Light’s eyes widened.

The Resurrection Cross was an item that allowed a player to overcome death and re-enter the match.

However, its penalties were severe. Rather than using it to resurrect, it was generally better to start a new game.

Golden Light had used it this time to make sure he didn’t miss the opportunity to confront Seong Jihan, despite the significant penalty.

“Streamers are all the same.”

The iron staff that had been waiting swung down on Golden Light’s head.

*Crunch!*

“Thanks for the 2 kills.”