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Chapter 123
0.
Dune Wild Trail.
Even after the major event had ended, it remained the region with the largest number of users.
And the place where the most villains congregated.
Therefore, guilds tended to pay more attention to their branches in the Dune Wild Trail than to those in other regions.
This was especially true for the Rapid Guild, Seonghyun's guild, which had been a key force in the recent event.
A few people were gathered at the guild branch.
However, they were not familiar faces within the Rapid Guild.
Storm Shadow, Kurosawa Ren, and Spear Sovereign of Dawn, Meiran.
The two, who were originally members of Tempest Wing and Eclipse Order respectively, had transferred to the Rapid Guild.
They had transferred despite the despicable nature of their previous guilds and conditions that were inevitably less favorable than before.
And the team they were assigned to.
“Hmm, so you two are…”
“Uhahaha! I heard this team has a peculiar way of calling each other by nicknames, right?! You can call me Loudmouth Light-Lancer!!! Would this one here be something like Black Wind?”
“…Hoo, it doesn't matter either way.”
“Uhahaha!!! Nice to meet you all, nice to meet you!”
Luna, who had struggled to get this far, looked at Meiran with a somewhat tired expression.
On the other hand, the other team members looked at Meiran with intrigue.
Especially one team member who hadn't joined much earlier than them.
“Hmm, this one is called JoseonBestSwordsmanKimChegeon. I look forward to working with you.”
“Oooh?! JoseonBestSwordsman!? I've heard of you!!! Keuheuuu! So you're Korean!”
“Keum, in spirit, at least, I can say I am a Joseon person.”
“What utter crap. If Joseon Samurai is done with her introduction, she should step back.”
When Longfeng said that, JoseonBestSwordsman roared in extreme anger:
“You bastard!!!!!! Defeated Bandit!!! Didn't I tell you not to call me by such a disrespectful nickname!!!”
“No, I'm Failed Thief. Since you're JoseonBestSwordsman but have a Samurai job, aren't you Joseon Samurai? Reverse Archer, am I wrong?”
“Just shut up, please.”
“Hmmph~”
“Haaaah.”
It's always like this after JoseonBestSwordsman joined.
No, was it like this even before?
Luna, the team leader, couldn't help but feel a headache coming on and clutched her throbbing head.
Well, even if they bickered, their teamwork was top-notch.
‘Should I just let it slide?’
Thinking that, Luna proceeded with the introductions anyway.
“…So, this is us. Since you two will be joining our team as Seonghyun-nim's backup, it seems you'll need to help with our leveling.”
As Luna spoke like a sensible person,
Meiran and Kurosawa Ren nodded seriously.
Meanwhile, in the background,
“Hmph!!! How dare a mere thief!!! Try to mock JoseonBestSwordsman!!!”
“Hah. Now you're just calling me a thief, huh!!? Wanna go a round!?”
“Hahaha! Very well! I wonder if the wounds you suffered last time have healed?”
“Oh really? That time I was just careless…!!”
Watching Longfeng and JoseonBestSwordsman bickering in the background, Luna spoke.
“Both of you, please…!!!”
As she slightly raised her voice, both of them flinched and shut their mouths.
Because even JoseonBestSwordsman, despite her short time with the team, knew Luna was terrifying when she got angry.
Anyway, looking at the two who had calmed down, Luna said her piece.
“Hoo, we're a team meant to support Seonghyun-nim. If we act like this, what will other people think of us? And what about Seonghyun-nim himself?”
It was something said off the cuff.
It wasn't wrong, though.
Luna didn't know Seonghyun well either, but her statement was based on general experience.
However, an unexpected reaction came from JoseonBestSwordsman.
“Huhuhu, indeed. Since this one has met Seonghyun-nim in real life, I suppose I need to be more careful.”
“Eh? Joseon Samurai, how could you have seen Seonghyun-nim?” 𝔫𝖔𝖛𝖕𝔲𝔟.𝔠𝖔𝖒
“Hng???”
“Wow, fuck. Is that for real?”
“Uhahahahat!!! You've actually met Seonghyun-nim in person!? That's amazing!”
“How did that happen? If we go to Korea, can we meet Seonghyun-nim?!”
All the team members asked JoseonBestSwordsman with keen interest.
Although she didn't react verbally,
Luna also looked at JoseonBestSwordsman with curiosity.
Wasn't this a team of people who were all captivated by Seonghyun and had volunteered to be his backup team?
Such a reaction was only natural.
And amidst that, for JoseonBestSwordsman to say she'd seen him in real life, it was inevitable that everyone would be intrigued.
How on earth did they meet?
“Ahem ahem, how we met is a secret. In any case, I saw him briefly.”
“You’re not just making this up, are you?”
“Hmmph.”
“Hah, I got my hopes up for nothing.”
“Uhahaha!!! Got my hopes up for nothing!”
“Hmm hmm, from now on, Joseon Samurai's words...”
“Do not call me by that name!!!”
As it became noisy again,
Luna shook her head and said to them.
“Ahem, anyway, everyone, please be careful. It's already been two days since Seonghyun-nim vanished. Public opinion might take a negative turn, so let's be prepared.”
Everyone nodded at Luna's words.
Two days had passed since the major event.
People were naturally paying attention to Seonghyun's activities, but with no actual sightings reported, they were full of complaints.
If things continued like this,
it wouldn't be very good.
Luna had already heard from Rapid, the Guild Master.
‘She said that the activity itself would be difficult for the time being.’
They had to catch up as much as possible during that hiatus.
Seonghyun's leveling speed might slow down compared to theirs, but Luna didn't think so.
Knowing Seonghyun's formidable power, Luna was confident that even if their levels drew closer, he wouldn't actually be outpaced.
She was sure of it.
‘We absolutely cannot slow down now.’
‘Only then can we provide proper backup.’
‘For now, our party hunting efficiency is excellent, so…’
A party of seven in total.
Although the most efficient number for a party is usually six,
a party composed of such elites among elites is a different story.
Because efficiency can be maximized.
Luna was quite confident.
Well, everyone was overflowing with personality,
‘I just have to control them somehow.’
As Luna resolved to do so,
more time passed.
1.
The internet's reaction to Seonghyun was beyond imagination.
It was only natural.
After all, he had performed spectacularly in the first major event.
Moreover, this wasn't even his first time, was it?
The Ancient Fortress, the Anemore Solo Raid, and now this event.
Furthermore, he had even crushed the alliance led by Echo Willow.
With all this, was there any reason for the internet not to fawn all over him?
[PayingIsEssential: Wow, Seonghyun, this guy seems incredible. How can one person achieve so many feats?]
└[KDisJustForShow: Well, it's possible, but what's truly amazing about Seonghyun is that he did it as a rookie.]
└[GuildRecruiting: This is it. For real, LOL.]
Many people unanimously praised Seonghyun's accomplishments.
The video of the Echo Willow alliance's collapse, released after the major event, also garnered immense attention.
Since many people had suffered at their hands, it was perhaps a natural outcome.
[HardcoreGamer: Soooo satisfying!!!]
[LFTank: Seriously, Kya! This is it!!!]
[LFLover: Seonghyun is a legend, for real!]
└[SeonghyunFanatic: Seonghyun? You don't add 'Nim-nim-nim' to his name!?]
[EveryoneBehindMe: How does he beat them all?]
└[LikesAnalysis: If you look closely, Seonghyun probably got very tired and struggled too? Or, seeing as he didn't use AoE skills against those elites even when cooldowns should have been up, it seems he strategized well, took down the elites quickly to seize the initiative, and forced them to flee?]
└[CravesRecognition: Oh? That sounds plausible, doesn't it? Doesn't that mean Seonghyun's game sense is insane too? Leaving a thumbs-up.]
Some people thoroughly analyzed Seonghyun's actions, and the fervor was intense.
However, that too lasted only a day or two.
Online reactions were always intense and swift.
But they cooled down just as quickly.
[Title - What's Seonghyun up to these days? There are no sighting reports at all.]
[Author - ObserversPOV]
『Anyone heard what Seonghyun is doing or where he is these days?
It seems like it's been 4 days since the event ended, but there's no news other than that last video upload?
Has anyone seen him?』
[BulletHellMaster: ??? Come to think of it, there's no news at all;;]
[BossSlayer: No news at all, for real?]
└[ObserversPOV(Author): Yeah, no news at all.]
[PleaseBuyCoins: Seriously, no news at all? They're not even trying to ride the wave?]
Posts like this also started appearing.
Usually, when someone stirred up the internet this much, eyewitness accounts were bound to surface one way or another.
Guilds often let it happen as it also helped with publicity.
However, not a single sighting of Seonghyun had appeared.
A mysterious persona?
Perhaps, but from the public's perspective, it was frustrating.
[Title - What the heck are Rapid Guild and Seonghyun even doing;;;]
[Author - FanAndAnti]
『Seriously, the hype is real, but are they really just going to pretend to ride the wave and then dip?
Shouldn't they be doing something more?
They're not even out in the fields interacting with other users.
No sightings either.
What kind of outdated mysterious concept is this?
Did they pick the wrong concept entirely?
Even if he's the Demon King, isn't this a bit much?』
[BuffThiefPlz: LOL, that might be true, but honestly, it’s rubbing me the wrong way.]
[DemonKingLOL: Demon King, LOL. Aren't you cringing saying that?]
[SoundingWillow: LOLOL, honestly, I think the hype is insane. The way I see it, he's gonna hit rock bottom soon LOL.]
└[FanAndAnti(Author): I agree, but are you from Echo Willow? LMAO, that’s hilarious.]
Posts mixed with such complaints began to surface.
It was also a testament to how fervent people were about Seonghyun, but conversely, it meant they could turn into adversaries at any moment.
They were thirsty for any reaction or appearance from Seonghyun.
And so, around the time five days had passed since the event ended,
people started to get seriously angry.
[MaxDPSRun: Rapid Guild isn't responding at all either?]
[TopLaneMortician: What? Did the Demon King die??? Why isn't he showing up???]
[BackFromLurking: Seriously no reaction at all? And we don't even know why?]
[F2PExpert: I don't know, but maybe Seonghyun just doesn't have anything worth showing anymore? I bet everyone would love it even if he posted something random; this is a bit disappointing.]
[ExtremeSwordsman: Seriously, not even turning on a live stream once is too much.]
[MageAnti: If fans want it this much, isn't it basic manners to at least post an update on what you're doing???]
Gradually, public opinion was taking a downturn.
Not everyone felt this way, but quite a few people were expressing dissatisfaction.
Indeed, in this sensationalist era where many claimed even two videos a week weren't enough,
five days was a considerable amount of time.
The situation was exacerbated by some instigators stirring the pot.
Malicious users, the villains, secretly launched an offensive, and a significant number of users were swayed by their agitation.
As a result, opinions about Seonghyun were not heading in a positive direction.
What on earth was he doing?
Why was there absolutely no news?
While people were in an uproar,
Seonghyun wasn't unaware of such public sentiment.
However, he didn't particularly care.
Just because dogs bark doesn't mean the train stops.
More than anything, Seonghyun knew very well that public opinion always changes.
In fact, Seonghyun, looking more peaceful than anyone, smiled and muttered.
“It ends today. Shall we go take the test then?”
While people were digging into what Seonghyun was doing,
Seonghyun had been training for over five hours every day for five days.
And that had finally come to an end.
He had finally completed the conditions for the Hall of Knights' trial.
It was now time to complete the test.
[Translator - Prøks]
[Proofreader - Prøks]
