I Gave Up Being Stronger

Chapter 243

‘’Who would actually win if you fought Woongi?”

For Cha Jin-Hyeok, this was a rather sensitive question. If he were the Jin-Hyeok from his Sword King days, he would have confidently replied, ‘Of course, I would win.’ But now, it was different. Jin-Hyeok could probably win against Woongi if it was just a fight, but he was not confident about winning while creating a storyline and paying attention to the production, as a Streamer should.

“Hm…” Jin-Hyeok pondered what to reply.

‘That wouldn’t really count as a victory, would it?’

To achieve that, he would have to overwhelmingly dominate his opponent and provide catharsis to the viewers, but honestly, Jin-Hyeok thought that was impossible.

“I don’t think I can win.”

“...Oppa, you’re weak.”

“That’s true. Maybe I can get stronger with more effort.”

“Yeah, I will also help you as much as I can as a Healer.” Jin-Sol’s standards had gradually been influenced by Jin-Hyeok.

Meanwhile, Swampland No.2, who had desperately fled from the fourth floor, was still hiding inside the cleared Dungeon.

‘That guy is cunning, intelligent, and meticulous. He would not have just left the Dungeon knowing I was still here,’ he thought.

Chul-Soo had surely set traps inside the Dungeon, so Swampland No.2 could not act rashly just yet.

‘I have to wait longer. He is too meticulous.’

Swampland No.2 deliberately stayed in the Dungeon for an extended time.

‘I need to stay here for at least more than three days. That should make him give up.’

He decided to hold out in this place for three days to find the right time to flee. At that moment, when he was the only one in desperation, Jin-Hyeok thought of Swampland No.2

“Ah, but there was a fan of mine in the Dungeon…”

“Wait, a fan of yours was in the Dungeon?”

“Yeah, I wonder if he got out safely.” Jin-Hyeok assumed that since the fan had managed to sneak in, the fan could likely get out too.

“Wait a minute!” Jin-Hyeok abruptly stood up. He realized that if a fan had entered the Dungeon, it meant one more Player had been registered as an entrant. The Dungeon’s progression changed depending on the number of Players inside it.

“What’s wrong?” Jin-Sol asked.

“There was an unexpected variable in the Dungeon. No wonder we didn’t get the All-Clear Achievement!”

“...”

“I should go back and check.” Jin-Hyeok had been uneasy about not getting the All-Clear, so this was good news. He had been sure he was missing something.

As Jin-Hyeok hurriedly left, Jin-Sol had an epiphany. “Aha! If it’s not an All-Clear, then it’s not really a clear at all!”

She felt embarrassed for being pleased with just an ordinary clear.

***

BongMiNaTV’s Bong King and Kang Mi-Na secured an exclusive interview with Egan Paul. It was a collaboration between the top Streamers in Korea and the top Streamer in the United States.

“Yes, the standards of the Korean Players were quite different from ours.” Egan had not encountered many Korean Players. It was mostly Chul-Soo and his party members. “Their fundamental way of thinking was different. I can see why the Korean Region is the stronghold of Playing.”

The Navigator, Black Panther, was still in shock.

“The Navigator of the Avengers Army realized a lot while Playing with the K-Force,” Egan said. The very foundation of Black Panther had been shaken. The way he had Played until now seemed to have been completely negated, leading to an inner transformation. “Perhaps our way of Playing was wrong. Korean Players have shown us something very new.”

Mi-Na internally cheered. ‘This is going to be a nationalist content!’

Nationalism content, while divisive, still guaranteed a certain level of viewership. If they managed to portray a certain degree of national pride well without being too obvious, they could reduce the number of dislikes.

“When I Played with the K-Force Players, to be honest, it felt like I'd hit a wall,” Egan added.

Rather than portraying the national pride, this content was showcasing the Chul-Soo pride.

Suddenly, the chatroom erupted.

-Wait, is that actually Chul-Soo?

-It is! Chul-Soo is in the chat room!

-Chul-Soo is here!

-Chul-Soo up! Chul-Soo up! Chul-Soo up!

Bong King, who was managing the chat, hurriedly searched for the username [Kim Chul-Soo] in the chatroom. He promptly gave Chul-Soo temporary manager rights and opened the chat.

“Chul-Soo, is it really you?” Mi-Na asked, hoping he would answer in the chat.

At that moment, news of Chul-Soo’s appearance in the livestream spread instantly, and countless viewers flocked to BongMiNaTV.

Mi-Na trembled at the rapidly increasing number of viewers. ‘Wow, the Chul-Soo effect is amazing!’

With Chul-Soo’s appearance, the viewership increased by thirty thousand, and it was still climbing.

Meanwhile, Egan finished the conversation he was just having with Jin-Hyeok on the phone. “Unfortunately, it looks like we will have to end the interview here.”

“What? But…” Mi-Na was confused.

‘We have other things planned in our schedule!’ she thought. They had planned a friendly match between Korea’s famous Swordsman, the Anus Destroyer Lee Hyeon-Seong, and Avengers Army Players.

“I’m sorry, but Chul-Soo is calling us,” Egan replied. His demeanor was as grave as if he were declaring that his country needed him. “He says we need to re-enter the Haeundae Dungeon.”

The Dungeon had been cleared, but Chul-Soo needed to fill in the number of entrants.

“I guess… this means that we were not completely incompetent.” Egan was moved. He had indeed felt inferior while Playing with the K-Force and thought that he had not played any significant role while in the Dungeon.

‘But Chul-Soo seems to think differently,’ Egan thought.

Otherwise, there was no reason for Chul-Soo to specifically call them back to re-enter the Haeundae Dungeon.

“Chul-Soo said our task is not finished yet.”

“What task are you referring to?” Mi-Na asked.

“The task of not leaving our fallen comrades behind.”

Chul-Soo had retrieved two bodies from the Sand Worms’ territory and handed them over to their families as soon as the Dungeon was cleared. The entire scene had spread across the United States through Egan’s livestream.

“There are still comrades we have not found.” Even Egan had neglected this. However, Chul-Soo, a Player from another country, was taking care of it.

“I think the K-Force Players are crazy.” Egan thought they were not normal Players by any means. Their standards were crazy, and their way of Playing even more so. “They are beautifully crazy.”

Egan ended the interview. His expression was solemn.

***

“Tsk, she is totally addicted to Playing,” Jin-Hyeok said while shaking his head in disapproval.

Han Sae-Rin had entered another Dungeon with other Players just a few hours after leaving the Haeundae Dungeon. She was currently out of contact. So, Jin-Hyeok decided to team up with Mole Man.

“Chul-Soo, I have a request too, moly.”

“What is it?’

Mole Man tried not to show it, but his eyes held a significant amount of eagerness. Jin-Hyeok could see his state without even using Broadcaster’s Insight.

[#Please. #Give me a chance too.]

Curious about what could be so urgent, Jin-Hyeok found out it was something quite simple.

“I want an official certificate stating I am a member of the K-Force, moly!”

“An official certificate?”

It was hard for Jin-Hyeok to understand why Mole Man wanted such a thing, especially since the K-Force did not have anything like official certificates. Moreover, the term K-Force was just a convenient term people used. It was not even an official name.

“We don’t print out any official certificates… But why do you want it?”

“...”

“I thought we were already on the same team,” Jin-Hyeok added.

“...!”

Except for the Navigator’s habit of adding ‘moly’ at the end of his sentences, Jin-Hyeok actually liked Mole Man. Now that Sae-Rin had retired as a Navigator, Mole Man had become an excellent colleague who could take on the role of Jin-Hyeok’s Navigator. Jin-Hyeok actually thought of Mole Man as a colleague he got along well with.

“You little…!” Overwhelmed with emotion, Mole Man forgot to add his usual ‘moly’ at the end. “You’ve been thinking of me as part of the team?”

“Of course.”

“I already knew that.”

[#Yes! #I am the Navigator of the K-Force!]

Feeling uplifted, Mole Man asked, “So? I guess going into the Dungeon to find the bodies is just an excuse?”

While the Avengers Army and the general public were praising and idolizing Jin-Hyeok for his touching act, Mole Man had a different view. It was unreasonable for an excellent Player to re-enter a Dungeon he had already cleared just for that reason.

‘Surely! There must be another reason!’

Just then, Jin-Sol came out of the room and said with a sly smile. “It’s not clearing a Dungeon if it’s not an All-Clear.”

Mole Man felt as if he had been hit on the head. It was a point he had completely overlooked. And hearing it from Jin-Sol was a huge shock.

‘Even Chul-Soo’s sister thinks the same way?’

Losing to Chul-Soo was one thing, but Mole Man could not afford to lose to Chul-Soo’s sister too. Not having thought of this was a defeat in mindset.

“Y-You’re right. If it’s not an All-Clear, it’s not a clear at all, moly!”

***

Once again, Jin-Hyeok entered the Haeundae Dungeon. He immediately sensed that the decision to re-enter it was the right one.

As soon as they entered the Dungeon, a timer caught his eye.

[01:22:15]

There was approximately one hour remaining. Mole Man also noticed the timer.

“It has been about forty-six hours since we left the Haeundae Dungeon, moly. So, this timer seems to be set for around forty-eight hours, moly. It means we had to do something more within forty-eight hours after the Dungeon clear notification for an All-Clear, moly!” Mole Man realized another fact. He read the Dungeon information with his Navigator’s eyes. “Not everyone has left the Dungeon, moly! Someone has been guarding this place!”

“...Ah!” Jin-Hyeok immediately understood what Mole Man meant

‘There, I can see a figure tiptoeing over there,’ Jin-Hyeok thought.

Mole Man, busy reading the Dungeon information, seemed to not have noticed this figure. It was definitely the fan Jin-Hyeok had met previously.

‘He seems like a very shy fan.’

That fan’s name was Swampland No.2. Thanks to Swampland No.2, the Dungeon’s settings had been maintained.

‘I’m so grateful for him.’

Jin-Hyeok decided not to speak to the fan, considering the latter’s extreme shyness. Jin-Hyeok was just trying to be considerate, but Swampland No.2 was confident in his perfect stealth.

‘Chul-Soo… Your eyes and senses are not that powerful!’ Swampland No.2 thought. This new information became data for him. He now knew that this level of stealth was enough not to be detected by Chul-Soo. ‘The data is accumulating. This will become my strength. I will retreat today, but next time will be different!’

The desperate Swampland No.2 left the Dungeon, and Jin-Hyeok, along with other Players, reached the fourth floor.

“That’s right. There was a fifth floor here, moly!” Woongi had definitely come down from the fifth floor. Since the Dungeon clear had happened on the fourth floor, it meant that they had not fully cleared the Dungeon. “I will lead you guys to the fifth floor, moly!”

Mole Man led the way up the stairs. The stairs were quite high, and as they climbed them, they encountered a large wall blocking the way. “Hm… We need to break this wall to pass, moly. Just wait a minute, moly.”

Only about twenty minutes were remaining. As time went by, Mole Man profusely sweated, searching around the wall, but could not find a solution.

Just then, a message came through from Wang Yu-Mi.

‘Huh? An urgent message from Sae-Rin?’ Jin-Hyeok thought. It seemed like she had checked Jin-Hyeok’s livestream after coming out of the Dungeon she was in. ‘What is this?’

Upon reading the message, Jin-Hyeok grinned. The message was fairly straightforward.

[What the hell are you doing? Just break the damn wall! Don’t you know that Woongi broke it to come down?]

With Sae-Rin’s confirmation, Jin-Hyeok immediately took out Miri.

‘Huh? What happened to Miri?’

Miri had transformed.

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