[Translator â Peptobismol]
Chapter 1: Becoming the Bastard of a Chaebol Family
Everyone has at least that one game in their lives.
For Woojin, it was âGate Hunter.â
Gate Hunter was a virtual reality game set in a modern-day hunter genre. With graphics and an expansive open world that seemed a decade ahead of its competitors, along with NPCs that reacted just like real people.
âDamn. Isnât this just torturing aliens?â
âThe combat isnât a joke either. This is insane, isnât it?â
âAnd itâs not even online, itâs a single package? Just take my money already!â
Thus, the game released when he was in his teens caused a hot sensation. During its heyday, tens of millions of downloads per day were not uncommon.
âBut it failed in the end.â
The reason was simple.
It was too difficult.
ă(Tip) Death resets everything. Cherish your life!ă
The message that appeared at the very beginning of the game.
Gamers who underestimated this message ended up in deep trouble.
In the game, there was only one life.
[Park Siwoo (Protagonist, Starting Character)]
[Specialty: Swordsmanship Genius]
[Strategy Difficulty: â ]
[Recommended Occupation: Swordsman]
[Shortest Clear Time Ranking]
[1. Kukurupingpong â 365 days]
[2. Hello â 533 days]
.
.
[Park Siwoo User Board]
âWhy is it so hard to kill five tutorial goblins? Is it normal to keep regressing endlessly here??
âGive it a month and grind hard LOL
âWhy am I getting wrecked by goblins when Iâm a swordsmanship genius!
âSeems like your brain isnât a genius haha
âAh, damn. Made one wrong move and got sent back to the starting village LOL Is this guy even worth a star?
âAfter playing for two years, Siwoo makes one mistake and goes back to square one LOL What a joke LOL
âCongratulations on starting a reset life HAHAHA
Even the protagonist, who could be played from the beginning, took a year to clear the first stage.
The difficulty was so extreme that it was impossible to clear with ordinary talent.
Even the second character that could be unlocked, HansiaâŠ
ă(Tip) To become a great mage, you must control mana well.ă
[Hansia (Heroine)]
[Specialty: Magic Genius]
[Strategy Difficulty: â â ]
[Recommended Occupation: Mage]
[Shortest Clear Time Ranking]
[1. Kukurupingpong â 401 days]
[2. Hello â 703 days]
.
.
[Hansia User Board]
âWTF, how do you even use magic LOL
âTeacher⊠I really want to use magicâŠ
âBreaking news! Successfully cast Fireball on the 20th try â Greatâ Successâ !
âTalentless loser, not recommended. GTFO.
âFailed the Dungeon Academy test for the 30th time. Epic fail LOL
âAh, I just canât do this!
Most users were eliminated during the âAcademyâ process, where they had to implement magic while feeling mana, rather than monster hunting.
It was not strange that users who repeated endless regressions began to leave one by one.
Fifteen years after the release of the game, there were only a few users left playing Gate Hunter.
It was understandable, considering there were many easier games with better graphics and virtual satisfaction. It had become somewhat of a nostalgic game.
âThere must not be many perverts like me left.â
He logged into the capsule.
[Welcome, Kukurupingpong!]
[Current playable character list!]
[1. Park Siwoo (â )]
[Shortest Clear Time]
[2. Hansia (â â )]
[Shortest Clear Time]
[3. Nam Gungmin (â â â )]
[Shortest Clear Time]
[4. Seo Yerim (â â â â )]
[Shortest Clear Time]
[5. Kim Minwoo (â â â â â )]
[Currently on day 1,832.]
âPhew, feels nostalgic.â
Looking at the character list, Woojin chuckled. Those five lines contained fifteen years of his life.
Fortunately, Woojinâs life had taken a turn for the better because of the game.
His personal broadcasts while playing Gate Hunter were explosively popular.
Woojin, who conquered the notorious game in the shortest time possible, provided great satisfaction to users, and as a result, his income changed drastically with substantial donations pouring in.
Becoming renowned as the worldâs greatest virtual reality gamer was just an added bonus. This was still the case even now when the popularity of Gate Hunter had waned.
Even if they didnât play the game themselves, many people still watched Woojinâs strategy videos. He could now live his whole life without playing games.
Despite the game receiving all sorts of curses, it was like a lifelong benefactor to Woojin.
âIâm definitely finishing the ending today.â
Kim Minwoo.
Five-star difficulty.
This bastard, known as the final conqueror of Gate Hunter, had a difficulty level that could make anyone curse.
[Kim Minwoo (Eldest Son of Ilsung Group)]
[Specialty: Diamond Spoon, Untalented, Arrogant, Lazy, Cowardly, Perverted, Drama Queen, Freeloader]
[Strategy Difficulty: â â â â â ]
[Occupation: Swordsman]
[Goal: Hunt down the Dragon Lord within 3 years of game time.]
The eldest son of Ilsung Group, the top-ranked conglomerate in the country.
Except for this one, all the characters were trash.
ă(Tip) Kim Minwoo is a character with a strong ego. Please respect his opinions!ă
âDamn bastard.â
He remembered the starting lines so vividly that his teeth were trembling.
Each of the five characters had their own strategy.
Kim Minwoo was no different.
Having a strong ego.
He only understood the true meaning of that after starting the game.
This guy directly âintervenedâ in the playerâs actions.
The intervention was simple.
For example, when trying to enter the gateâŠ
[Kim Minwoo refuses to enter!]
âGate? Why would you go into that dangerous place? Just awaken, thatâs enough. Items? You can just buy those with money, right?
[Kim Minwoo refuses to act!]
âDrink potions and strengthen your body? I donât wanna. They hurt like hell. I absolutely canât stand pain.
[Kim Minwoo refuses to train!]
âAh, itâs so damn annoying to build up skill proficiency. Seriously, I donât need to do this crap. Iâll live well enough just eating and sleeping.
Even sadder was the fact that, despite pushing himself to train to the point of death, he couldnât surpass the level of an intermediate Awakener. It was because he had absolutely no talent in any field.
And why was he so afraid?
The memory of when he encountered the initial boss was still vivid.
[Kim Minwoo is seized by extreme fear!]
[All stats decreased by 50%!]
[All skills are sealed!]
[Refuses all combat actions and flees!]
âArgh! Run away!
[You have died.]
[Game over.]
Three years of game time.
No matter how optimized the route was, he couldnât find a way to hunt down the Dragon Lord.
How the hell was this bastard supposed to conquer the final boss in just three years?
[Translator â Peptobismol]
The reactions on the user board after that dayâs broadcast were mostly similar.
âWatched the strategy broadcast, Kim Minwoo is a legend LOL
âIs this guy really a swordsman? Siwoo was like an angel LOL
âSeriously. If only the occupation was different as Pingpong said LOL
âYeah, didnât know he was a jerk. But this game doesnât allow class changes LOL, itâs gonna be a pain LOL
The despair-filled first battle.
It would have been better if his occupation allowed him to summon minions like a necromancer.
It wasnât that Minwoo lacked talent, it was that he lacked minions.
Even if they were F-rank skeletons, if he could control various monsters, they could fulfill their role adequately.
Moreover, undead summons werenât as cowardly as this guy.
But unfortunately, Minwooâs awakened occupation was a swordsman.
Kim Minwoo, who displayed the aura of five stars properly.
After that day.
[Kim Minwoo 1,024th attempt. Letâs try making a companion!]
Feeling that if his talent was pathetic, it might be solved by creating a companion, he attempted party play for the first time ever.
[Kim Minwoo becomes greatly enraged!]
âMocking the low-born, huh? Intellectuals?
His way of turning the tables in an instant even when he was pushed to the edge was enough to impress even Woojin.
âThis social disastrous bastard!â
He realized.
This guy was inherently unable to be with companions.
After that day, he went through a terrible time of trial and error.
Ultimately, he was able to carve out a new path.
He relentlessly elevated his status within the family, gained more authority, made money, and swept away all kinds of artifacts.
If he lacked talent, he made up for it with money.
If money wasnât enough, he poured in more money. And if even that didnât work, he spent even more money!
1,832 days invested for the clear.
Now was the time to see the fruits of that labor.
[Logging into the game!]
[Starting the broadcast!]
Soon, a massive door appeared before him.
[Entrance to the Dragon Hall]
[Location where the final boss, the Dragon Lord, is sleeping.]
[One day remaining until the Dragon Lord awakens.]
[Clear the game by hunting the Dragon Lord.]
âLetâs give it a shot.â
Just before the Dragon Lord woke up and started attacking. When Minwooâs strength was at its peak and the Dragon Lordâs strength was at its weakest!
âLetâs go!â
The door opened.
And revealed a monstrous creature with a dragon-like form.
* * *
âAn uninvited guest, huh.
[Witnessed the figure of the Dragon!]
[A powerful fear washes over you!]
That moment.
PwshooâŠ!
The rings on his fingers began to glow fiercely.
[Mental Protection Artifact Activated!]
[Iron Will (S) Activated!]
[Indomitable Spirit (S) Activated!]
[Keen Sight (S) Activated!]
[Viking Courage (S) Activated!]
[Warrior of Light (S) Activated!]
[Resisting the Dragon Lord!]
[Resistance Successful!]
[Immune to fear for 15 minutes!]
Five rings exploded in an instant.
âShit!â
How much crap did he go through to save that!
Just resisting once caused all the top-tier rings to shatter.
âShit LOL, five artifacts gone in one glance LOL, are exchange fees real?
âHeâs really lost it LOL, did he intend to awaken him?
15 minutes of fear immunity.
Not a single second could be wasted.
He activated all the artifacts he had collected tirelessly during that time like a madman.
[Dwarven Kingâs Roar (S) Activated!]
[All stats of equipment worn by Kim Minwoo increased by 50%!]
[Song of the Relic (S) Activated!]
[Kim Minwooâs talent limit increased by 100%!]
[Lightning Blade (S) Activated!]
[Attack power of the sword worn by Kim Minwoo increased by 100%!]
[Sword Dance (S) Activated!]
[Kim Minwooâs swordsmanship proficiency increased by 200%!]
No matter how trash-like his talent was, with the overlapping buffsâŠ
Slash!
He could even cut through the tough scales of the Dragon Lord.
Slash after slash.
An endless battle ensued.
3 minutes.
âCrazy. How do you dodge and stab that thing?
âPingpong isnât ranked number one in the world for for no reason LOL
[Dragon Lordâs HP is less than 85%!]
[Astonishing Achievement AchievedâŠ]
.
.
8 minutes.
[Dragon Lordâs HP is less than 63%!]
[Impossible Achievement AchievedâŠ]
âGonna be tough. Didnât he use up all his items?
âIs this even possible? The pattern is getting more difficult;;
âBut was there such a thing as an impossible achievement? First time hearing about it today.
âMe too.
14 minutes and 50 seconds.
[Dragon Lordâs HP is less than 50%!]
[Unsolvable Achievement, âDiscovering Possibilityâ Achieved!]
It was that moment.
âPuny human, this is as far as you go.
[Dragon Word (EX) Activated!]
[Artifacts ActivatedâŠ]
[Cannot resist!]
[Control of the body is released!]
Thud.
Like a cut rope, his body collapsed.
âHaâŠâ
An EX-level skill, huh.
A bitter laugh escaped.
This wasnât made to be defeated.
âDamn it. If I couldâve picked any other class, I wouldâve never picked the Swordsman class.â
The compatibility between the fearful Kim Minwoo and the Swordsman class was the worst of the worst.
From the early growth rate to the potential in the late game, everything was too low.
âHow the hell am I supposed to beat this?â
Despite conquering this game countless times, this time, no answer seemed to appear.
Thatâs when it happened.
The screen began to freeze, and instead of the usual red messages, blue messages appeared.
ăPlayer.ă
ăCongratulations.ă
ăYou have exceeded our expectations and shown potential.ă
[Notification: The final stage, Stage 6, has been unlocked!]
[Kim Minwoo]
[Strategy Difficulty: â â â â â â ]
[Features: Diamond Spoon, Untalented, Arrogant, Lazy, Cowardly, Perverted, Drama Queen, Freeloader]
[Occupation: Necromancer]
[Clear Goal: Hunt down foreign enemies within 7 years.]
[Notable Points]
[1. Kim Minwooâs occupation changes from Swordsman to Necromancer!]
[2. All main characters in the game are united in one world!]
[3. Growth elements branch out more diversely!]
[4. The stage for activities expands significantly!]
[Entering Stage 6 in 10 seconds!]
ââŠWhat?â
Woojin was dumbfounded by the successive messages that appeared.
âThere was a Stage 6?â
Was it a condition to unlock Stage 6 by reducing the Dragon Lordâs HP by more than half?
He didnât even know there were foreign enemies.
9 seconds.
8 seconds.
Watching the dwindling time, he thought.
âStage 6, this should be interesting.â
With Stage 6, there shouldnât be any worries about broadcasting for a while, right?
And thereâs the damn Necromancer occupation situation.
Just the fact that Kim Minwoo isnât a cancerous Swordsman guarantees some fun.
As 10 seconds passed.
Woojinâs consciousness began to blur. His body vanished in an instant.
Not just in the game, but also inside the capsule.
When the screen started flowing againâŠ
âPingpong logged out?
âWhatâs with the sudden shutdown?
âWhatâs going on?
Amidst the terminated broadcasts, only the chat window was busy flowing.
[Translator â Peptobismol]