Chapter 28

"Massid, thanks for today."

Unlike his majestic appearance when he was splitting the flesh golem in half, JiHan looked like a polite salaryman as he thanked Massid.

Thanks to the Force's Absolute Domain, his suit remained immaculate, which added to the atmosphere.

"It's okay... You already. Thanked." However, Massid only responded nervously because the difference in JiHan's demeanor when he swung his sword at the flesh golem and as he stood with them on the tower was too great.

When he'd seen that last strike, he'd broken into a nervous sweat, so he couldn't treat him as he had before.

"No. I cannot end it with just words. You've helped a lot. Without you, Kim Gyu-hyuk would've escaped after insulting my niece and me."

"I just couldn't stand him insulting a kid." As JiHan sincerely expressed his gratitude, Massid seemed to let his guard down a bit.

"I want to repay you somehow..."

"It's okay. After all, you even cleared the quest." Massid had no intention of receiving anything. He was okay with a simple thanks.

When he saw how Massid was rejecting a reward, JiHan thought, 'I should build a relationship with him.'

Diego Massid, Argentina's last hero…

Although he didn't look like much at the moment, his performance in the future would be astonishing.

Before Argentina's collapse, he was on par with Baron from the United States, and considering how bad Baron was when it came to control, Massid's talent was even more outstanding.

To put it simply, Diego Massid could become Earth's best Mage, so JiHan decided to awaken his abilities a bit earlier.

"It isn't material repayment. It's something about your abilities."

"What do you mean?"

"Your Gift is related to the ball, right?"

Massid nodded at JiHan's words. He wasn't surprised that JiHan knew his Gift.

Before Battle Net appeared in 2010, Diego Massid was the world's best soccer player.

Even after other professional sports died out because of Battle Net, he frequently made the headlines for having received the SSS-rank Gift, 'God of Soccer'.

It'd been ten years since then, his past glory was nowhere to be found, and he was considered one of the Top Three Troublemakers of the Gangnam Bronze League.

"The Mage class suits your Gift best."

"Mage...? Me?" Massid looked at JiHan in disbelief.

What connection could there be between a soccer ball and a Mage?

He would've dismissed it as nonsense if it were somebody else.

'But he showed an astonishing performance earlier.'

Having seen JiHan's performance, Massid thought that there could be something to his words.

God of Soccer was an SSS-rank Gift, and many guilds had tried to research his ability due to its rank, but…

People lost interest in him after all of their attempts ended in failure.

Massid had been wandering for 10 years, unable to join a guild. The only thing Massid did anymore was kick a ball inside the games out of habit. He had lost all hope.

'Mage class...'

Massid's eyes, which had lost their light, slowly filled with interest.

JiHan smiled. "If you're interested in what I have to say, I'll give you my contact information."

"Hmm... Okay, but you're probably streaming right now, so send it to me as a message.

"Okay. I'll send you my contact information. Regardless of repayment, I'll invite you for dinner."

"I like beef."

"I like it too."

JiHan and Massid chuckled at each other, and there was a warm atmosphere between the two.

Golden Light, who was watching from the side, regretted not acting sooner as he thought of Massid's super save.

'Ah... I should've blocked the Fireball earlier!'

"Mr. Sung! Please include me too!"

JiHan gave Golden Light a gloomy look as if he were asking, "You? Why?"

"That will be difficult. This is how I'm going to reward Massid."

"A-about the stream! I have a good proposal."

"I'll decline that offer." JiHan waved his hand.

"Mr. Sung! I want to be your editor!"

"I'll pass." JiHan waved his hand firmly. He didn't like noisy people.

"P-please...!"

Despite JiHan's firm refusal, Golden Light tried to plead.

[You will now be logged out.]

The game's end was approaching.

- Lol, Golden Light got rejected again.

- He has a good instinct. I feel like JiHan's going to blow up.

- As a 20-year Battle Net expert, I can guarantee that JiHan will skyrocket...

- You crazy bastard, it's only been 10 years since Battle Net came out!

- What the hell are you talking about? How can a traitor who betrayed the Sword King get to the top?

- The Sword King's fans are once again talking nonsense. Who betrayed who? Lol.

An intense debate was going on in Golden Light's chat room, but thanks to the amazing potential JiHan had shown, the voices of the Sword King's fans were almost buried.

'Ugh... I need to be his editor before he takes off. I want to be JiHan's editor. I want to film him!'

Contrary to his wishes, Battle Net was merciless.

Flash!

"Ah... No!"

- Yes!

Golden Light's sight flickered, and his viewer chat window was the last thing he saw before being logged out.

After he was logged out, JiHan checked the system messages.

[You've cleared the chain quest 'Zombies' Source (2)'.]

[You've earned 10,000 achievement points.]

[You've earned a Crystal's Fragment.]

[The next chain quest, 'Trace of the Apostle (1)', will unlock in Silver.]

'10,000... That was a great reward.'

He decided to think about the next chain quest later and instead focused on the rewards.

10,000 achievement points… Given the difficulty, it was a great reward.

'As for what the Crystal's Fragment does...'

JiHan read the item's description.

[Crystal's Fragment]

- Rank: B

- Grants the player a single-use Divine Blessing.

- This item can only be used in Bronze and Silver.

'Hmm...'

Divine Blessing was a strong buff that the pinnacle of the Support class, the Saintess, could use. It increased all stats by a whopping 50% or more, making it one of the most powerful blessings.

The ability itself was great, but…

'To think it's a single-use item...'

Considering he could only use it in Bronze or Silver, it was a bit disappointing.

The main reward was the 10,000 achievement points, and the Crystal's Fragment was just an extra.

JiHan stored it in his inventory. Maybe he would need it someday.

'Next up is the clear reward for the defense map.'

[You finished 1st in a defense game.]

[As a bonus for finishing 1st, experience and GP gained will be increased by 50%.]

[You've cleared the bonus quest.]

[Experience and GP have been tripled.]

[Your level has increased by 3.]

[You've earned 6,000 GP.]

Since he finished 1st and cleared the bonus quest, his level increased by three, putting him at level 13

There were only 12 levels left before he could participate in the Silver promotion match. It was an explosive growth rate that no other player had been able to achieve before.

'Good.'

JiHan was about to assign the stat points with a cheerful heart when…

BZZT-!

He heard an ear-splitting sound coming from the sword he'd rested on his shoulder.

A few other system messages appeared before him.

[You've completely understood the faith from another world.]

[Your Divine Power has increased by 1 and was integrated into Force.]

[The rank of 'Other World's Relic - Urk Priest's Execution Sword' has been decreased to D.]

[The 'Other World's Relic - Urk Priest's Execution Sword' has fulfilled its purpose.]

[Your Divine Power has increased by 1 and was integrated into Force.]

[The rank of 'Other World's Relic - Urk Priest's Execution Sword' has been decreased to E.]

Wasn't the exchange rate of Divine Power and Force 1:1?

Feeling disappointed, JiHan touched the sword. It had been quite useful, but sadly, the rank had dropped to E.

Since he wouldn't be able to use it to absorb Divine Power anymore, should he buy a new weapon?

At that moment…

[The 'Other World's Relic - Urk Priest's Execution Sword' has failed to hold the remaining power within and is being destroyed.]

BOOM!

The sword he'd used a lot of GP to buy cracked and exploded since it couldn't withstand the power of the Three Talents and Mount Tai Crush.

'Damn it...!'

The problem wasn't just that. The power that made the sword explode was about to spread in every direction.

He'd realized his martial arts technique wasn't perfect when he used Lightning Thunder Step, and he'd used all of his strength with Mount Tai Crush, making the power surge even more severe.

'So game events affect reality.'

JiHan quickly absorbed the strength from the sword into his three elixir fields. If he left it alone, it could blow up the house.

Crack!

The power flowing into the three elixir fields was too explosive, and JiHan's clothes were torn apart by the energy before he successfully absorbed the rest of it.

[Your Divine Power has increased by 1 and was integrated into Force.]

[Your Force has increased by 1.]

[Martial Power, linked to Force, has increased by 1.]

JiHan blinked several times at the unexpected messages.

'Three Divine Power equals one Force?'

What luck.

Although the C-rank weapon he'd bought had shattered, JiHan's heart was filled with joy at the unexpected profit. He'd earned two unique stat points from a C-rank weapon. What a bargain.

[Your Force has surpassed 15.]

[From now on, you can only absorb Divine Power from relics that are A-rank or higher.]

The following messages were disappointing.

They wouldn't let him get free honey so easily.

'I can't afford an A-rank item yet, so I won't be able to buy relics for a while.'

Reaching that conclusion, JiHan invested the remaining points he'd earned into Force.

Level: 13

Affiliation: Bronze League - Gangnam Area 1

Martial Power: 18

Force: 18

Thanks to the connection of his three elixir fields, both his Martial Power and Force became 18.

Although he only had two stats, everything looked solid.

'I've also earned quite a lot of achievement points, so I should open the Achievement Shop.'

JiHan was thinking about how to use the reward when…

"Uncle! Uncle!"

The door burst open.

Sae-ah entered the room with a bright smile while wearing an apron. She blinked her eyes.

"What are you doing...? Your clothes are torn. Even if you don't like Dad's suit..."

"My sword broke."

"Ah, I see."

Sae-ah nodded as she looked at the traces of the explosion.

It seemed like his weapon hadn't been able to handle the abuse anymore.

"Tsk, tsk. What kind of trash weapon were you using...? This millionaire will buy Uncle a new weapon!"

"Did you already receive the money from the Neo Self-Defense Force?"

"Yes. That's why I donated to you."

JiHan recalled Sae-ah's message.

[Uncle! That's enough. I'm fine! If you keep going on with this, you'll lose subscribers!]

And with that, he remembered Kim Gyu-hyuk's curses.

"Are you okay...?"

"Hmm? With the GP?"

"No. The curses."

"Ah... I'm okay. You taught him a lesson. That's all that matters."

Sae-ah smiled brightly.

She looked fine, but due to his past memories, JiHan couldn't tell if that smile was genuine or not.

"Anyway, come eat. I prepared something, and I have something I want to tell you."

"Something you want to tell me?"

"I'll tell you over dinner."

"Okay. I'll be right there."

"Okay. Take your time!"

What could she want to talk about all of a sudden?

As Sae-ah left the room, JiHan changed his clothes with a puzzled look on his face.