Korea-Japan Friendly Match (7)
Crrrk.
Shusuke ground his teeth.
How had it come to this?
South Korea?
They were opponents he had naturally assumed he would beat.
Just having to pull out a "Top-grade Movement Speed Increase Scroll" against people like them was already a blow to his pride.
Go ahead and try ripping something apart, then.
Seeing Baek Jinwoo figure that out in advance and mock him for it made it feel like his blood was flowing backward.
'If I lose here, it's all over.'
Of course, it was not as though the whole world would find out if he lost.
Because this was a private battle. But it would crack his pride.
That pride he had felt as a Japanese ranker from a major summoning nation would suffer an irreparable fracture.
And that fracture would gradually drag Japan downward.
'This is as far as the humiliation goes.'
Shusuke opened his eyes fiercely and glared at Baek Jinwoo.
And then.
Riiip!
He tore the scroll.
Rumbleeee….!
He could feel an enormous buff pouring into his summons.
"You're finished now. The moment I tore this, even Lord Hikaru would have a hard time dealing with it."
"…Really?"
Baek Jinwoo scratched his head.
"That's not exactly something I care about. I didn't ask, either."
Sugoi can't beat that? Well, that was possible.
Even if he had been ranked third in 「Battle of Summoners」, his main stage had been the Tower of Trials, not player-versus-player combat.
"Don't underestimate me!"
Papababat!
Shusuke's summons charged toward Baek Jinwoo's wolves, but—
Baek Jinwoo had already brought Gale Slayer's scythe into their path.
And on top of that, all five of them were within range.
"Gale Slayer."
Whoooosh!
The Grim Reaper that suddenly sprang out spun its scythe once.
"Huh?"
Shusuke gasped.
All five summons' HP had dropped sharply at the same time.
'But it's still something they can endure.'
So that reaper must be Baek Jinwoo's main summon….
That was a terrible choice. He doesn't even understand the basics.
Sending a summon alone into the middle of enemy lines? That was basically asking to get dogpiled.
"Everyone, rush in and tear it apart!"
The summons with their movement speed massively inflated, charged at Gale Slayer.
'What is this?'
Baek Jinwoo looked like he had just hit the jackpot.
If they had trusted their movement speed and pushed in aggressively, he might actually have been a little caught off guard, but they were really going to do this?
Gale Slayer's attacks were splash damage.
And right now, Lamba's stacks had been building for over four hours, so his attack speed was considerable.
Which meant—if they came rushing in like that?
Whirlwhirlwhirlwhirlwhirlwhirlwhirlwhirlwhoooosh!
Gale Slayer spun his scythe at a speed too fast to see.
From a distance, it almost looked like a tornado, and in that barrage of strikes, Shusuke's five summons disappeared.
They literally evaporated.
"W-what?"
Shusuke stared ahead with a bewildered expression.
'A bug?'
What was that?
Forget everything else—his tanker summon, Guardian (A-grade), had over 100,000 HP.
That Guardian got caught in that tornado and was simply torn apart.
Tududududuk!
And then, in less than ten seconds, its HP hit 0 and it was reverse-summoned.
"That's why I told you not to tear it. What a waste."
"Y-you…."
"I genuinely intended to use only the wolves, you know? But if you use a scam item like that, there's nothing I can do either. I have no choice but to use a scam summon."
Sssst!
The scythe-wielding summon vanished back into thin air.
This was ridiculous...
What kind of absurd summon even was that?! It was unfair, but there was nothing he could do.
The fact that no status window appeared at all meant they were carrying out the contract as agreed.
Wooooong!
Shusuke's protective barrier disappeared.
And what that meant was—
'I… lost?'
Me, world rank 30?
'And I even used a once-in-a-generation scam-tier item, yet I still lost completely.'
Which meant that now they would all have to combine forces and pay Yoobaek 100 billion won…!
Thud.
With a vacant expression, Shusuke dropped to his knees powerlessly.
Exclamations kept spilling from Gi Jaehyuk's mouth.
"...Did you see that? Does that even make sense, brother?"
Kang Jihoe also had a dazed look on his face.
"Hah, I seriously have nothing left to say now."
Hong Ari could only keep shaking her head.
It was a scam.
So absurdly overpowered that there was nothing left to say.
He had crushed Japan's Shusuke like that?
Now South Korea had truly risen to a position where it could become a major summoning nation.
'Though it wasn't us who did it….. It was Baek Jinwoo.'
Wasn't that basically the same thing?
Baek Jinwoo belonged to South Korea, didn't he?
And they were even Baek Jinwoo's disciples.
Clench!
Hong Ari forcefully suppressed her surging emotions and clenched her fist tight.
'Possibility.'
Now she could see it.
If they just trusted Baek Jinwoo's words and followed only his commands…...
How much would they have grown after one year, after two years had passed?
Might they even be dominating the world?
'Wow, seriously.'
Hong Ari still could not believe it.
That Shusuke. Superstar K.
To think he was kneeling there with such a hollow expression. And it was not just Shusuke.
Ryo, Atsuto, Makoto…
Every one of them had been utterly smashed here in Yoobaek City.
Of course, Japan still had two more rankers stronger than Shusuke.
'Baek Jinwoo.'
Seeing him wearing such a relaxed expression, as though beating someone like Shusuke was nothing at all, made something in her believe.
"Ari."
"Yeah, unni."
"I've made up my mind."
Oh Sunyoung must have felt exactly the same way. Now she could tell just from a look in her eyes.
"From now on, I'm going to listen only to Master no matter what."
Heh.
Hong Ari smiled. As if she had ever not listened before.
In truth, she felt the same way.
If she were being honest, she almost wanted to shut down Arirang and move into Yoobaek.
Though she should not do that.
"S-Shusuke brother!"
"Are you alright?"
The Japanese rankers came over and helped support him, but were their feelings any different?
Now they had to face reality.
South Korea was no longer the South Korea of the past.
They were strong. Not an imugi, but a dragon fully prepared to ascend.
'Now I understand.'
Shusuke recalled what Hikaru had warned him.
Never.
Absolutely never provoke him.
'Lord Hikaru knew everything.'
How far beyond all standards that gamer who had once been God Ji-nu truly was.
The Five Emperors, rankers, all that nonsense—he was someone to whom common sense simply did not apply.
That was why Hikaru had sent him, wanting to confirm whether he was really God Ji-nu. And in that process, he had wanted to avoid hurting his feelings.
'Because he might be God Ji-nu.'
And the result?
'He must be God Ji-nu.'
That scene just now could not be explained otherwise.
If so, had he done well?
'No.'
From the very beginning, he had spouted nonsense about demanding 1 billion won per match, and Ryo, a member of their national team, had even tried to use an assassination move against them.
If that fact reached Lord Hikaru's ears?
'…I'll be discarded.'
Shusuke despaired. He was afraid.
He was afraid that everything he had built up would collapse because of this journey.
'What do I do?'
There was only one way. Settle everything cleanly and get the hell out fast!
If they received the full 100 billion won in one lump sum, maybe that would calm them down a little, too.
Thud!
Shusuke got to his feet and looked at Yoo Jia.
"We lost. As promised, we will pay the amount. Please give us the account number."
"Ah."
Yoo Jia nodded and gave him the account number.
Pressed for time, Shusuke transferred the money from his own funds immediately.
On this trip, he had lost two scrolls and 100 billion won.
The losses were no joke, but he wanted to end the situation as quickly as possible.
"We'll send the video within a week."
"....Thank you. We, too, learned a great deal from this unofficial match. Then we will be on our way now."
Shusuke hurriedly wrapped things up and called the Japanese rankers.
"Everyone, get ready. Bring Ryo too!"
Ryo must have been in tremendous pain, because he was still sprawled out on the ground, drooling and snot running from his nose.
"Ah, understood."
"Hey, get up! Let's go already!"
The disciples watched the retreating figures, slumped like a defeated army fleeing the battlefield, with deeply moved eyes.
Only Baek Jinwoo stood there with the corners of his lips curled up, quietly watching them go.
* * *
Trudge, trudge.
The Japanese rankers arrived at Yangyang Beach and prepared to cross the East Sea.
How gloomy was the atmosphere?
They had not spoken a single word the whole way there.
Anger?
No.
To be precise, it was emptiness. And worry as well.
How were they supposed to report this to Lord Hikaru?
"Hoo."
Letting out a sigh, Shusuke looked over at the Japanese rankers.
Ryo.
That bastard was still sprawled out and had not woken up. Maybe he simply did not want to wake up.
Because the moment he regained consciousness, he would have to accept this shitty reality.
And the other rankers?
The life had gone out of their eyes. A humiliation they had never experienced before.
And the fact that this humiliation had come from Korea, whom they usually looked down on, must have made it even worse.
If they had at least lost to one of the other great powers, they could have accepted it.
"…Bring out the wyverns."
Aerial Wyvern (B-grade).
That was what they had ridden across the East Sea.
"Yes, big brother."
Yeah.
What was the point of thinking about it anymore?
Let's just go home.
Just as they summoned their wyverns—
Kiiirurururururu!
Another wyvern came flying down from the sky,
flap!
And landed in front of them, kicking up a sandstorm.
"Where are you all hurrying off to?"
Shusuke's eyes widened.
The man who lightly jumped down from the giant wyvern—was Baek Jinwoo.
'Why is he here?'
Had he really followed them all the way here?
'D-don't tell me…?'
There was only one reason Shusuke had tried to leave Korea as quickly as possible.
Because he was afraid Baek Jinwoo would keep digging into their mistakes and wrongdoing.
And that word of it would spread until it reached Hikaru.
'Please.'
Shusuke prayed inwardly. That his suspicions would be wrong.
"Thinking about it now, I'm pissed."
But.
Judging by the grin on Baek Jinwoo's face as he approached, the feeling was bad.
It was as if—he could see straight through everything in his head.
"W-what are you angry about?"
"That Ryo guy trying to kill my disciple, for one….. And demanding 1 billion won per match at the start, for another….."
'As expected!'
Shusuke was horrified.
That God Ji-nu bastard! It was not just that he was good at summoning. The man himself was simply cunning.
"So I figured I'd have to ask the Japanese government—or maybe that Yoshida Hikaru guy? The one who's the representative of Japan's national team. Ask whether this is really how it's supposed to be. Whether this is something that should just be let go—"
Baek Jinwoo smiled faintly.
To be honest, Baek Jinwoo was not a particularly broad-minded person.
If anything, he was closer to being petty.
Rather than letting wrongdoing slide with a laugh, he was the type to dig into it relentlessly.
"....What is it that you want?"
"Oh."
Baek Jinwoo opened his eyes wide.
"You catch on pretty fast, don't you?"
"...."
"Yeah, actually, I do think matters between us should be buried between us."
Lies!
He came here to threaten them!
As Shusuke stared at him with a dumbfounded look,
"However."
Baek Jinwoo continued.
"I can't stand by and watch someone who tried to casually take another person's life acting as a national representative."
The smile vanished from Baek Jinwoo's face in an instant, turning cold.
Then—
"Ryo."
He pointed at the unconscious Ryo.
"Kick him off your national team and make sure he can never act as a player again. If you do just that, I'll keep what happened between us a secret forever."
"...."
Shusuke's eyes shook.
Then he started calculating rapidly.
Ryo?
He was ranked ninth on Japan's national team.
If all he had to do was cut him loose, then he himself could remain at Hikaru's side.
"....Can I trust your word?"
To give words credibility, they needed a contract.
A system contract, at that.
But Baek Jinwoo shook his head.
"I think you're mistaken."
"Pardon?"
"I didn't come here to negotiate. I just came to let you know."
Baek Jinwoo smiled again.
"If Ryo is still active the next time I see him, I'll hold Yoshida Hikaru responsible. The choice is yours, so choose wisely."
After patting Shusuke on the shoulder twice, Baek Jinwoo turned around with a swish.
Saying only what he came to say, Baek Jinwoo boarded the wyvern again.
'....Damn it.'
Shusuke could only stare at him with a bitter, resentful expression.
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