Chapter 115

[Translator – Prøks]

[Proofreader – Prøks]

Chapter 115: Boom Coming?

The emergence of SS-rank achievements.

The world went crazy.

Like water overflowing from a dam, SS-rank achievers began to appear one by one among the awakening powerhouses.

[United States, SS-rank achievement emerges!]

[Germany and France likewise!]

[Official announcement from the Japanese government!]

Though the numbers weren’t large, the fact that they were increasing was extremely encouraging.

[World Awakening Association agrees to use the title ‘Super Rookie’ for SS-rank achievers…]

[New criteria set after 50 years? ‘SS-rank’ classification system likely to be established…]

[Currently, the most likely possibility is to classify Awakeners above level 1,000 as SS….]

Until now, all awakening individuals above level 500 were lumped into the S-rank category. However, now that achievement ranks have risen to SS, there was a need to raise the level standards accordingly.

Level 1,000.

It was a realm that only a very small number of Awakeners had reached.

At this point, it didn’t matter if the achievement rank wasn’t SS.

Having accumulated such a level meant that various factors naturally followed, starting from potential.

Furthermore.

Serious discussions were taking place around the world regarding the potential of Necromancers.

Kkam-muk, a Korean NewTuber with 6 million, or rather, now 7 million subscribers, was also riding the trend and conducting a live broadcast.

[Kkam-muk Live] – Is the era of the Necromancer really coming?

“Hello, viewers. This is Kkam-muk, your host for today’s Awakener broadcast. Today, we have a very, very special guest. You’d have to be a spy not to know this person in Korea! The man with 100 million NewTube subscribers! The one and only, the world’s greatest Super Rookie, Mr. Kim Minwoo!”

“Hello. I’m Kim Minwoo.”

Instantly.

The number of live viewers began pouring in like crazy.

1 million.

2 million.

In an instant, the number of viewers reached 5 million.

—Wow, amazing

—His appearance, wow.

—Wow, the channel has grown a lot lol They even got Kim Minwoo lol

“I sent a love call, but I never imagined he would actually appear. He has a tournament schedule coming up soon…”

“Well, I’m preparing for that. And I’ve always enjoyed watching Kkam-muk’s broadcasts.”

“Haha, this is an honor. Thank you so much for taking the time out of your busy schedule. Shall we get to the main topic?”

Kim Minwoo looked at Kwak-muk and said.

“The world is quite noisy these days. There’s talk that the SS-rank era has arrived. You’re also that rank, aren’t you, Mr. Kim Minwoo?”

“That’s correct.”

“What do you think as an awakening individual about this trend?”

“What do you think of this trend as an Awakener?”

“There’s no such thing as a free lunch, as they say.”

“Are you saying that the emergence of higher-ranking Awakeners could also imply greater risks in the future?”

“If Awakeners can reach SS-rank, there’s no reason why Gates can’t do the same.”

“That’s a valid point. The world is also discussing that topic. Necromancers are also being hotly debated because of that topic.”

Kim Minwoo nodded.

Higher-ranking Awakeners had appeared.

There was no guarantee that stronger Gates wouldn’t appear. Naturally, the choice of class for those who had achieved SS-rank achievements was also a hot topic.

The future could change depending on what class they chose. Kkam-muk, glancing at Kim Minwoo, threw out a topic.

the first thing we’d ask was about their parents’ well-being, right? It was a class infamous for being so expensive.”

“That’s correct.”

It was practically a non-mainstream class among non-mainstream classes, but these days, Necromancers are starting to get a lot of attention. Kim Minwoo, of course, and that Mr. Liang from the neighboring country also brought a pretty decent report card. Even if he’s a Fake Minwoo or whatever, 47 hours is definitely…”

“It’s a decent time.”

―For real, haha.

―The aftermath of Fake Minwoo was quite strong lol

―Even a fake can cut the Baguette martial artist lol

“There’s a lot of talk about this. Whether it was possible because of the SS-rank achievement, or because he was a Necromancer. What do you think, Mr. Kim Minwoo, the top instructor of the Necromancer world?”

“That Mr. Liang Xiaojun probably isn’t good with a sword.”

“Because he would have changed to a swordsman if he was good?”

“That too, and you can tell just by looking at how noobs walk.”

“Ah, like the saying, ‘It’s fun to watch a fool walk’? Is that what you mean?”

“That’s a very appropriate example. But Kkam-muk, are you okay? It seems like it’ll be hard to gather Chinese viewers in the future.”

“Haha, I’m too busy loving the viewers here on this live stream. And I like kimchi.”

Kkam-muk countered cheerfully and looked at Kim Minwoo.

“So, in Kim Minwoo’s view, Fake Minwoo is a swordsman noob. Is that how you feel?”

“Well, that’s true, isn’t it?”

“Ah, I can’t help but ask this question. How do you think he would compare to Seo Ye-rim?”

“Are you underestimating the Divine Archer? I might have downplayed her a bit back then, but with Ye-rim’s level of swordsmanship, Fake Minwoo would be cut down within 70 exchanges.”

“You’re saying this under the assumption that their physical abilities are equal, right?”

“That’s right.”

―Still, 70 exchanges against the Divine Archer means he’s not bad with a sword, right?

―Probably? Even during the Sword Saint’s era, there were only a few in Korea who could withstand 50 exchanges, let alone 70 lol

―Well, the title of Sword Saint wasn’t just given for nothing, haha.

“With that level of swordsmanship, clearing it in 47 hours? Hmm… If he had chosen to be a swordsman, it would have taken him longer.”

“So, are you saying that it was possible to clear it in a short period because he was a Necromancer?”

“That’s correct.”

Of course, there was a prerequisite.

Mr. Liang probably invested quite a bit of money at level 1 as well.

If he had been a swordsman, the investment would have been reduced to a quarter of what it was.

[Translator – Prøks]

[Proofreader – Prøks]

47 hours was a record achieved through Necromancer + throwing money.

But there was no need to emphasize that here.

‘The countries will only look at the clear time anyway.’

Money?

Before level 100, the investment would be at most a few trillion won.

There was no country among the Awakened powerhouses that couldn’t handle that kind of money.

Only when they passed level 200 and the investment reached tens of trillions would they start to sweat a little.

But whether it was level 100 or 200.

‘It would still take a few months to reach there anyway.’

It was quite a distant future.

On the other hand, challenging new records or demonstrating outstanding performances was something that could be done right away.

For politicians who need to build up their achievements immediately, it was more practical to assign them safe occupations like SS-rank swordsmen or mages, rather than risk getting mediocre results by assigning them something vague.

Instead, they could just assign Necromancers and pour in 300 billion won…

‘I wonder if you’d like to chase after Isabella and grab some nationalistic points?’

But suddenly, China came up with some impressive records.

Huh?

Kim Minwoo’s response wasn’t as bad as expected…

On the contrary, China was celebrating, claiming that this was just the beginning.

And it was understandable. After all, they had managed to eliminate France’s Isabella.

Furthermore, the gap between the leading group and them was only 8 hours.

Of course, it was a significant difference, but it wasn’t an insurmountable chasm.

As Awakeners leveled up, the number of variables they faced inevitably increased.

Other nations had already witnessed China’s example. They had confirmed that targeting Isabella alone was sufficient.

This served to further fuel their ambition.

“Mr. Kim Min-Woo, what do you think are the advantages of being a Necromancer?”

“They have the highest potential.”

“High potential.”

“At the same level and with similar talent, no other class that receives adequate investment can beat a Necromancer.”

“That’s right. On the contrary, without money…”

“Then, you’ll naturally have to do something else.”

“Is there a benchmark? A certain amount of wealth you need to have, something like that…”

“It would be easier to have trillions of won. To give you an example, it costs around 1 trillion won to enhance a D-rank skill book to 9th level.”

“To create a single curse?”

“It exploded at 8th rank.”

―WTF, haha, if it’s D-rank, it’s level 101, but investing trillions?

―(Info) Kim Minwoo has a record of pouring in 300 billion won at level 1.

―Wow… Didn’t Isabella’s potions cost trillions of won?

―Including a high rank potion, it might not even reach 1 trillion. The highest rank was probably bought and consumed as a special potion, so I don’t know exactly, haha.

―Kim Minwoo probably invested similarly for high-rank potions.

―How much has he spent in total until now?

―Normally, the consumption amount increases about three times per rank.

―For F-rank, 300 billion. For E-rank, within 1 trillion. For D-rank, within 3 trillion. For C-rank, 8 to 9 trillion?

―Yeah. Unless it’s a special book, it’s probably about that much. B-rank… The Dullahan book alone would have cost about 10 trillion lol.

―Yeah, haha, the bone price hasn’t dropped yet, haha. Ilsung is always buying bones lol.

―There’s a reason why he always gets investments from the chairman lol. The consumption can’t be handled lol.

―(Weird) He’s spent nearly 20 trillion so far?

―(Horror) He hasn’t bought the highest-ranking potions yet? Shocking.

―(Nightmare) But even if he spent all of that, he still has 45 trillion left…

―Ah, he got 65 trillion in investments, right? Damn, haha.

―But it’s okay, as long as he brings in one good gate, he can easily break even, right? lol

Kkam-muk, who was looking at the chat window, blinked and looked at Kim Min-Woo.

‘…45 trillion?’

It was at this moment that he once again realized just how wealthy he was.

Meanwhile, Kim Minwoo continued speaking.

“Then you have to equip the skeletons, buy potions, if you obtain soulbound skills like me, you have to buy bones, etc. There are a lot of places where money is needed.”

“Is there any room for compromise?”

“If you’re going to compromise when you’re still a small fry, you might as well not even try. But if you really have to, you can probably loosen up a bit from around B-rank.”

“Ah, because you have the Dullahan summon?”

“Yes. From there, you can do your part without spending a lot of money.”

In other words.

If you didn’t feel like it, you could even abandon it from level 251.

From then on, you can at least do your part by learning Dullahan. What if you add an SS-rank skill to that?

At least it wouldn’t reach a situation where you regret choosing Necromancer!

It was no different from presenting sweet choices to countries.

Just give it a shot for once.

Even if it doesn’t taste good, there’s a way.

That’s roughly the gist of it.

At that moment.

Breaking news came up.

[The United States is the first to draw their sword!]

[John Harrison, the SS-rank achievement Awakener from the United States, changes his class to Swordsman!]

[He challenges the gate record along with Liang Xiaojun…]

“Wow. While we were talking, the second Awakener to change classes after Liang Xiaojun appeared! Swordsman. It’s the most common choice.”

SS-rank achievement Awakeners have appeared in various countries. Most of them have not yet changed their classes.

“It seems like everyone has been watching each other until now, right?”

“I think so. They couldn’t be sure if Necromancer was really good.”

“The United States literally drew their sword first. Since they’re challenging with Swordsman, it seems like they want to compare the clear times.”

Kim Minwoo nodded.

In any case, someone had to try it.

They needed another example to determine whether Necromancer was truly good or if it was just strong because it was SS-rank.

As the United States played the role of the big brother among the awakened nations and had two SS-rank Awakeners, it seemed they had stepped up as an example.

Kkam-muk played a video on the TV. It showed John Harrison surrounded by reporters answering questions.

“John Harrison also seems to be aiming for a 90-point gate. What do you think, Mr. Kim Min-Woo?”

“In my opinion… .”

* * *

[(Breaking news) Kim Minwoo, is John Harrison doomed from the start? Mentioning that it will take over 60 hours to conquer the U.S. gate… .]

[John Harrison enters the gate, retorting in a sharp tone…]

[60 hours 2 minutes 3 seconds! Harrison comes out of the gate all battered!]

[France, at least they kept their last shred of pride!]

As expected.

Kim Min-Woo chuckled as he read the article.

John Harrison.

An Awakener who uses a sword slightly better than Liang Xiaojun.

‘But, he’s just as bad.’

Trying to set a record with just that level of skill?

Against a Necromancer who invested heavily in the early stages?

“Yep, cut by the baguette.”

He was cleanly schooled by the baguette martial artist line, not even the Chinese Necromancer, and the story ended with a heartwarming ending.

There was a 12-hour difference compared to Isabella.

The United States, once hailed as the strongest Awakened Nation, had its pride shattered, and the repercussions didn’t end there.

The precious SS-rank Awakeners.

The nations that hadn’t yet assigned them classes started to make their moves one by one.

[(Breaking news) Is the ‘Necromancer Boom’ coming? Most SS-rank awakeners chose Necromancers!]

[Japan, India, Russia, Canada… Necromancers are pouring out everywhere!]

It was a bonus that achievement scores began to be copied.

[Translator – Prøks]

[Proofreader – Prøks]