Ranker’s Return

At the top of the tower in the center of the castle, there were several men sitting inside. They ranged from a man dressed in ordinary clothes to fully armed knights.

‘Why am I here...?’ 

Hyeonu looked at the men sitting in front of him and pondered on why he was sitting here. He was just trying to get some information...

“Hah...” A deep sigh emerged from Hyeonu’s mouth.

Just then, a man dressed in colorful clothing came in and sat in the chair opposite Hyeonu. The man gave off the air of a noble. The identity of this man was Liu Yongyun, who was in charge of the city where Hyeonu was currently located. Liu Yongyun had been handling official duties as usual, but he rushed over after hearing that there was a self-proclaimed nobleman from the West Continent who had crossed Mount Cheon.

‘It isn’t a lie that he is a noble. His dignity is so high that I would believe it if he said he was royalty,’ Liu Yongyun thought.

Here, Hyeonu’s high dignity stat exerted its strength. It gave Liu Yongyun the perception that Hyeonu’s status was extraordinary.

“You said that you crossed Mount Cheon. Is this true?” Liu Yongyun was polite as he asked for confirmation from Hyeonu. It was to prevent any misunderstandings.

“Yes, that’s right. I’ve crossed Mount Cheon.”

“You called yourself a noble. Can I ask which kingdom you are from and what title you have?”

Hyeonu paused before he answered Liu Yongyun’s question.

‘I have to say my name, but it is a secret.’

Hyeonu’s name was a secret. He should never forget that while he was streaming. The name ‘Gang Hyeonu’ might be common, but it wasn’t necessary to announce it before his professional gaming debut. It would be known on ‘that day’.

Hyeonu urgently wrote in the chat window, -I have to turn off the sound for a while. I’m sorry.

It was an enclosed space, so he couldn’t speak to the viewers without being heard by Liu Yongyun.

-Ah, why again?!

-What is it this time?

-Isn’t this between us? Eh?

The viewers were running wild, but Hyeonu was no longer paying attention to the chat window. It was something he had done more than once, so he didn’t hesitate for long.

“There is only one kingdom in the West Continent. Yusma is the only empire in the West Continent. I am Gang Hyeonu of that empire,” Hyeonu responded in a polite but dignified manner.

“The only empire, Yusma... Gang Hyeonu?” Liu Yongyun cocked his head at the familiar name. “Gang Hyeonu... Does the West Continent have a similar language system?”

Of course, it was the same game, so the language used could only be the same. However, Liu Yongyun had no way of knowing it. That’s why he asked.

“It is the same. There is nothing different about the words.”

It was natural. This was a game with the same background, so the language used couldn’t be different. It would be the same when the Demon World was released later.

“By the way, I’m also an adventurer,” Hyeonu added.

“Adventurer!!” Liu Yongyun’s face was full of surprise.

Adventurer—Liu Yongyun was familiar with this existence. However, he had only seen mention of it in literature, so this was the first time seeing it in person. Adventurers were monsters that wouldn’t die—beings from an unknown place who became stronger quickly in a special way. Most of them had a good mentality, and friendly relationships could be formed as long as there was adequate compensation. Still, their growth might be fast, but there was a limit. Nevertheless, it wasn’t a big problem to use technology to make up for insufficient power.

‘It must be...’ Liu Yongyun wondered how strong this adventurer must be to cross Mount Cheon alone.

“Are there many adventurers like you?” Liu Yongyun asked carefully with a serious expression.

Hyeonu replied a bit mischievously, “I’m the most outstanding among adventurers. The strongest person without any disagreement—that is me.”

“This isn’t a joke, Viscount Gang Hyeonu!” Liu Yongyun raised his voice when he noticed the playfulness in Hyeonu’s words.

Hyeonu’s words were mischievous, but he wasn’t lying. Rather, it was close to the truth. No, it was the truth itself.

“Who said it is a joke? It is obvious. I have confidence that I won’t blink at all even if hundreds of adventurers flock to the city.” 

The moment he finished speaking, Hyeonu released a hidden pressure, and a black-red energy emerged from the top of Hyeonu’s shoulders. It was a mixture of fighting energy and magic power.

Silence fell.

Liu Yongyun’s escorts and the ordinary officials couldn’t speak due to the pressure Hyeonu gave off. Only Liu Yongyun was unaffected.

“You naturally deserve to say that. Please restrain your pressure,” Liu Yongyun said, apologizing to Hyeonu. “Then I will introduce myself to you. Viscount Gang Hyeonu, my name is Liu Yongyun. I am the third imperial prince who was given the mission to protect the empire from Mount Cheon.”

Liu Yongyun revealed his true identity—the third prince of the only empire on the East Continent, Yuxin.

‘Emperor? There is an emperor in this place? Shouldn’t he be in the palace?’ Hyeonu felt dizzy for a moment.

An imperial prince...

Why was the imperial prince here? Moreover, he had directed pressure at the imperial prince...

“I apologize for my rudeness a little while ago. Please forgive me.” It was Hyeonu who bowed his head and apologized this time.

Liu Yongyun waved his hand, refusing Hyeonu’s apology. 

“Why apologize when you didn’t do anything wrong? It was my fault that I didn’t properly disclose it from the start. By the way, what is your reason for crossing the mountains?” Liu Yongyun asked to change the topic.

‘Changing the topic? Can I turn on the sound now?’ Hyeonu wondered.

Liu Yongyun wouldn’t call out Hyeonu’s name anymore since he had given his full name. It was clear that Liu Yongyun would only use ‘Viscount’ if he were to call out to Hyeonu.

‘Let’s turn on the sound first.’ Hyeonu turned on the sound for the stream, which had been blocked for several minutes.

Then he started responding to Liu Yongyun’s words, “There is great curiosity about the East Continent. I said I was going to the East Continent, so His Majesty, the emperor of the Yusma Empire, wrote a diplomatic letter. It will be handed over to His Majesty, the emperor of the Yuxin Empire. Would you like to see it?” 

Hyeonu pulled out a white scroll from his inventory. 

“How can I see it first before His Majesty? I’ll give it to His Majesty later. Viscount, if it is like you, then His Majesty will be very interested.” Liu Yongyun created an atmosphere like he was going to retreat. Now that Hyeonu’s identity and reason for appearing was confirmed, it could be said that the purpose of this meeting was fulfilled.

‘I have to contact His Majesty first,’ Liu Yongyun thought.

Nonetheless, this was just his situation. Hyeonu still had business to discuss. 

“Do you have something like a map? As you know, this is my first time in the East Continent. I don’t know where to go.”

In fact, he still had a lot to say. There was a lot to gain after all.

*** 

-An authentic begging stream.

-No, no, it is ripping him off.

-Begging is demoralizing. Let’s say he has been sponsored.

Hyeonu received a lot from Liu Yongyun, who was in a hurry. There was a map of the East Continent, even though it wasn’t detailed and was roughly drawn, as well as return amulets created by the East Continent’s shamans. In addition, there was a gold plaque representing the quests of Yuxin’s imperial family.

‘It is so-so.’

It was a blessing in disguise. The thing Hyeonu had thought would be a mere waste of time brought him such luck.

‘There is the gold plaque, so quests are a separate matter... Should I enjoy it now?’

“Everyone, shall I go and take a look around? The name of my current location is Yuanyang and it is similar to Derek Castle on the West Continent. It is in charge of the borders. Therefore, the city is quite big. There is a lot to see.”

Hyeonu started to experience the East Continent in earnest. He noticed during the last stream that the viewers reacted greatly to such trivial things. It was probably because they couldn’t see and experience the East Continent personally, so they could only speculate and feel satisfied through Hyeonu’s stream.

-Go go go go.

-Let’s go to Yuanyang.

-I think I’ll only watch this today.

-Let’s feed Tang-E first. 

“So shall we start with food first?”

-Go go go go.

-Feed Tang-E too!

Tang-E had changed into his human form at some point under the viewers’ persistent demands and was standing next to Hyeonu.

“I have to take off my mask, so I’ll be changing the perspective,” Hyeonu said.

Then he synchronized the streaming with his own vision while removing Crasul’s Curse.

‘What should I eat first?’

Yuanyang had many street stalls, and they sold all types of food. All the street food in the world seemed to have gathered here. They ranged from tteokbokki to dumplings, takoyaki, sausages, kebabs, waffles, and so on. Yet all of Tang-E’s attention was focused on the meat. To be precise, it was the whole pig barbecue.

‘Was he that impressed with the wild boar meat he ate last time?’

Tang-E couldn’t remove his gaze from the whole pig barbecue. It was as if his soul had been sucked in.

-What are you doing?! Go ahead and buy him meat!

-Tang-E wants to eat barbecue right now!

-Is it because you don’t have money?!

-Tang-E is Cute has gifted you 651 gold coins.

-Tang-E is the Best Best has gifted you 93 gold coins.

-Accomplished Tang-E has gifted you 164 gold coins.

-This is the money for our Tang-E’s meal.

-We are responsible for Tang-E’s meal!

-It is the shout of Tangsamo (the group of people who love Tang-E)!!

As Hyeonu hesitated for a moment, the viewers guessed the situation and threw gold coins at Hyeonu. It was money for Tang-E’s meals, but the amount was too high just for food.

“Everyone, do you want all three meals a day to be luxurious? So many gold coins for Tang-E’s meals...” Hyeonu was full of courage as he talked to the viewers. Nevertheless, viewers weren’t frustrated.

-Yes, so what? I have a lot of money.

-I have a lot as well.

-I have more, so what is Alley Leader worried about?

“I understand... Tang-E, tell me if there is anything you want to eat.” Hyeonu grabbed his trembling right hand and smiled warmly at Tang-E.

“That, I want to eat that.” Tang-E pointed to the whole pig barbecue.

Hyeonu approached the stall with the whole pig spinning around and ordered meat, “Auntie, give me two servings of this.” 

“This young man, you are very handsome. That child over there doesn’t seem like your son. Is he your younger brother? Your little brother is really cute!” The merchant said, praising Hyeonu as he ordered food.

-I admit that Tang-E is cute...

-She said that Alley Leader is handsome?

-Can an NPC lie?

-It can’t be... Our Alley Leader can’t be a handsome man! This is betrayal!!!

The merchant’s praise was a dagger in the hearts of some viewers. It left some audience members with a greater curiosity. Hyeonu had an appearance that was praised by NPCs...

This went against the logic of reality.

The merchant told Hyeonu, “Now, I’ve packed a lot. Don’t fight. Share it with your little brother.”

Hyeonu’s plate contained an unimaginable amount for two servings.

-This person’s attention to appearance...

-I want to go to the East Continent as soon as possible. I want this service.

-Yes, let’s wake up from the dream.

Tears flowed from the eyes of some viewers.

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