Chapter 3
After the storm-like meal had passed.
Shin-hyuk’s family was the first to leave their seats.
In-seok, the eldest son, glared at In-gyun’s seat as Shin-hyuk’s father left, and asked Choi Chul-ho.
“Father, are you really going to accept In-gyun’s family back?”
“Why? Is that not allowed?”
At Choi Chul-ho’s nonchalant reply as he sipped his scorched rice tea after the meal, In-seok gritted his teeth.
“That bastard In-gyun ignored your orders and married some woman of unknown origin he picked up from who knows where. If we bring someone like that back into the family fold, there will be—”
“In-seok.”
“…Yes, Father.”
But even In-seok froze like a human encountering a bear the moment he met Choi Chul-ho’s half-lidded gaze.
Patting In-seok’s stiff shoulders, Choi Chul-ho whispered softly:
“Are you his father?”
“…!”
“Manage your own children however you want. But I’ll manage mine as I see fit. Whether that means casting them out or calling them back.”
“…Yes.”
As Choi Chul-ho subdued In-seok with a single word and finished his scorched rice tea—
The second son, In-ho, flashed a friendly smile.
“Wow, if our nephew gets placed in Silver tier, he’d be a special prospect… Of course, we’d have to plug him into our Shinhwa Guild, right?”
“That’s your business to handle. Isn’t the Shinhwa Guild yours?”
“Haha, Father, you’re too modest. Among everything with the Shinhwa name, there’s nothing that isn’t yours. Anyway, I’ll take that as your permission. Of course… assuming that outlandish claim of his succeeds.”
But even though he noticed the sharpness hidden behind that friendly smile, Choi Chul-ho said nothing.
“Oh my, then it would be great if our Shinhwa Department Store could do a collaboration too! The reversal of the nephew called the Incompetent Trash Picker! Something like that.”
With the eldest daughter Seon-hwa’s words—subtly joining in with her older brothers to disparage Shin-hyuk—the family gathering of December 30th came to an end.
—
After everyone had disappeared to their respective homes.
Choi Chul-ho, who had been reading in his study, spoke to the empty air without changing his reading posture.
“What do you think?”
“…Shadows do not think.”
“You may answer since I’m asking.”
But surprisingly, an answer came back from the empty void.
An art that could only be shown by those who had honed stealth—one of a player’s abilities—to the extreme.
Choi Chul-ho, who employed such a being as his shadow, urged for an answer once more.
The shadow was silent for a moment, then laid out its thoughts.
“He seemed to have momentum.”
“Momentum… In what way?”
“He was filled with conviction that what he said would come true. I saw the momentum contained within that conviction.”
Having momentum.
The momentum contained in the way he spoke as if what he said would definitely come true was impressive enough to make even the shadow admire it.
“Then do you think that outlandish claim of his will really come true?”
“…But momentum and ability are separate things. If everything he’s shown so far wasn’t a highly calculated ploy solely for the placement exam… Honestly, I think it’s difficult.”
But that was separate from acknowledgment.
Especially since the opponent was Lee Ju-ho, the eldest son of the Ohsung Guild Master, who had all of Ohsung Group’s support behind him.
A man whose natural talent had him rated as Silver upper-tier—not Gold, but the highest of Silver.
As such, the probability of Shin-hyuk beating Ju-ho was extremely low.
No, to be honest, it would be correct to say it was impossible.
Of course—
“Then shall we make a bet?”
“A bet… you say?”
“Yes. A bet. I’ll bet that the kid keeps his word.”
“…Do you really think that child will succeed, Chairman?”
“At the very least, that’s how it looked to my eyes. Something has changed. Something fundamental.”
Choi Chul-ho was different.
Closing the book he had been reading and smiling, Choi Chul-ho looked like a child delighted to have found a favorite toy.
At this, the shadow sighed.
“Then I’ll give up.”
“Why?”
“I’ve never seen you make a wrong decision, Chairman. I’m not stupid enough to bet on a game I’m sure to lose.”
“What a shame. It would have been a chance to tease you.”
Choi Chul-ho, chuckling as he said how unfortunate it was, stood up and gave an order.
“Contact the PR team. On January 1st, during the placement exam, a divine being will be born from the Shinhwa Group. So tell them to prepare in advance.”
“Yes.”
And that was it.
The value of Shin-hyuk, whom the entire Shinhwa Group would rally to promote, had been decided.
—
* * *
Hannam-dong residence.
To be precise, a commotion had erupted in Shin-hyuk’s house.
“Shin-hyuk, what in the world possessed you to say such a thing in front of your grandfather?”
At the center of the commotion was Shin-hyuk’s father, In-gyun.
Still reeling from the bomb his son had dropped, he staggered while holding his forehead.
But Shin-hyuk didn’t seem particularly concerned.
“Father.”
“…Father?”
“Please trust me just this once. I’ll show you the results.”
“…What on earth happened to you overnight? You’ve never even called me ‘Father’ before…”
Rather, just as when he had faced Choi Chul-ho earlier, he pushed forward with his will, full of momentum.
A feeling like facing an iron wall.
For some reason, that feeling made one have no choice but to believe—and In-gyun slumped onto the sofa, unable to hide his sense of futility.
“…Are you confident?”
“Yes. And it would be even better if you would grant my request.”
“A request… Fine, I’ll hear it. You’ve never asked for anything your whole life, and now you’re even using the word ‘request’—I have to listen.”
“Thank you.”
“Shin-hyuk.”
“Yes, Father.”
“I believe you. Not because of the victory reward you spoke of, but because I believe my son truly is that kind of remarkable person.”
“…Yes.”
Though his voice carried a sense of sternness, Shin-hyuk—who couldn’t possibly not know the warmth contained within—answered in a slightly trembling voice, then told In-gyun what he needed and returned to his room.
“First, let me check my status.”
As the saying goes, know yourself and know your enemy, and you’ll never be defeated—with the thought that perfectly understanding himself would bring him one step closer to victory, Shin-hyuk pulled out his estimated status sheet. It was shocking.
“…The highest stat is Strength at only 14. Mana is only 9? Is this really the stat of a prospective player about to take the placement exam? A Shinhwa High School student at that?”
Player Training High Schools—shortened to just high schools—had systems that could reasonably estimate the status windows visible after player awakening.
And since Shinhwa High School boasted some of the best equipment around, it was safe to say there was no error.
Yet the results were so bizarre that Shin-hyuk’s bewilderment was only natural.
The average adult male’s average stat is 10.
Yet Shin-hyuk’s stat, as someone specializing in becoming a player, was only 14—that said it all.
Especially fatal was the fact that his Mana stat—considered most important for a player—was only 9.
As Shin-hyuk stared at the document that made him sigh just by looking at it, he let out a snicker when he saw the trait section.
—
[1. Versatile]
—
“As expected, it shows up as just one.”
Trait: Versatile.
A trait that allows one to do anything well.
It was the trait that gave Shin-hyuk the name “Incompetent Trash Picker.”
Because while he could do anything well, it didn’t vastly exceed the average, so there was no specialty to speak of.
But Shin-hyuk knew.
That he had another trait besides Versatile.
“The unlocking of Late Bloomer was probably at Platinum.”
Trait: Late Bloomer.
One of the traits commonly called hidden traits or sealed traits—a trait whose very existence is unknown until certain conditions are met.
The condition for Late Bloomer was achieving Platinum tier.
And the effect of the Late Bloomer trait was simple.
“All skills I possessed before the trait’s awakening rose by at least one rank, and in some cases, several ranks. After that, the growth rate of acquired skills also increased.”
Skills.
If traits are the heart, skills are the organs.
Essential components that make up the body, like organs that cannot be omitted.
Being able to raise the rank of such skills by several levels was an incredibly impressive trait.
Moreover, thanks to his other trait, Versatile, Shin-hyuk possessed a variety of skills, so the synergy effect was doubled.
The time it took from Platinum to Challenger was actually faster than the time it took to reach Platinum—that said it all.
“This time, I’ll bloom Late Bloomer even more perfectly.”
In the past, Shin-hyuk had acquired various miscellaneous abilities, but he had focused on only one skill to raise his tier.
Because of that, the number of skills Shin-hyuk possessed at the time of Late Bloomer’s awakening was not very large.
But this life would be quite different from the last.
“I should get some sleep.”
Having steeled his resolve, Shin-hyuk threw his weary body—tired from dealing with Choi Chul-ho—onto the bed.
—
* * *
December 31st.
With one day left until the placement exam, Shin-hyuk was facing his father, In-gyun.
“I’ve obtained the Low-Grade Stat Enhancer and Mana Pills as promised. Since it’s right before the placement exam, there wasn’t much stock, and prices were high… but I managed to get them somehow. I’m sorry I couldn’t get you better ones.”
“No, this is enough. You’ve worked hard, Father.”
Before In-gyun were the Low-Grade Stat Enhancer and Mana Pills he had barely managed to obtain after a day of running around.
Stat Enhancers that increase physical stats when consumed, and Mana Pills that increase Mana stats.
Of course, the downside was that they were low-grade and could only be used in the early stages, but since everyone taking the placement exam was a beginner anyway, it didn’t matter.
‘The Stat Enhancer and Mana Pills increase stats by 5. So roughly, my current status window would be…’
Having immediately consumed what In-gyun had obtained, Shin-hyuk calculated his current status window in his head.
—
[Status Window]
Name: Choi Shin-hyuk
Class: X
(Stats)
Strength: 19 Stamina: 18 Intelligence: 18 Mana: 14
(Traits)
1. Versatile
2. Late Bloomer <Sealed>
(Skills)
X
—
‘About this much.’
Confirming that the lowest stat had become 14 when the highest had previously been 14, Shin-hyuk flashed a satisfied smile.
But there was no room for complacency.
‘This is no different from just standing at the starting line. The kids from Shinhwa High School probably have higher stats than me. Lee Ju-ho might even have over 30. In that sense, I can’t afford to be careless.’
What Shin-hyuk had consumed were things anyone could get if they had money.
For Shin-hyuk, who needed to surpass Lee Ju-ho—who had surely consumed things that couldn’t be obtained even with money—there was no room for complacency.
“Then I’ll be going now.”
“What about equipment?”
“I’ve prepared it in my room.”
“Good. Since you haven’t awakened yet, you can’t use your inventory. Well done.”
Having finished all his thoughts, Shin-hyuk entered his room, leaving behind the clock slowly moving toward midnight.
Then he put on the basic equipment he had prepared in advance and belted a sword at his waist.
And when all preparations were complete—
—
[You have awakened!]
[Welcome to the Dimension Arena!]
[The placement exam will now begin!]
—
January 1st.
The day of awakening and the placement exam had dawned.
