Ranker’s Return

Hyeonu thoroughly promoted Phinis right to the end. The viewers didn’t know it, but his words were a direct or indirect promotion of Phinis.

“Finally, I’ll show you the scenery around Phinis and end the stream.”

He said it was to show the scenery, but he was actually showing them the monsters. This was also a thoroughly calculated act. It was an act with this message: ‘The level of monsters around Phinis is like this, so players who can kill monsters of this level should come right away.’

“This is outside the east gate that you saw previously. There are very few monsters. It is a great place to hike because there is one really scenic mountain.”

Hyeonu stood on the precarious wall as he looked outside and talked.

-Yes, it is good to hear things you don’t mean.

-I don’t want to climb up there.

-Alley Leader is taking the initiative to show the scenery before we can go?

The viewers laughed at such a Hyeonu. They wouldn’t go but found the invitation funny. “Of course, I’ve been to so many mountains, so I don’t want to go hiking. However, you haven’t been to that many yet... so I’m just making a recommendation. I don’t mean much by it.”

Hyeonu ran across the wall like he was doing acrobatics. The viewers cheered for this.

-Is this a geography feature video?

-The wall looks like it’s 10 meters high...

-Uh, don’t run while sharing your point of view ㅠㅠㅠ.

-It is too terrible.

From then, it was a series of dizzying moments. Hyeonu ran clockwise around the walls. He jumped over the broken wall in the middle and headed to the north gate he had in mind.

“The last place I will show you is the north gate. I just briefly explained the other places. Here, I will show you the scenery of the north directly.”

Hyeonu kicked off from the wall and soared into the sky. The basic height of the wall was 10 meters, and the height of Hyeonu’s jump was 2 to 3 meters, so the viewers got a view from around 15 meters above the ground.

-Uhh!

-Spare meeee!

-My stomach suddenly...

The viewers complained of extreme fear and motion sickness due to the sudden jump.

‘This is fun.’

Despite that, Hyeonu enjoyed the cool breeze. He landed neatly on the ground without making any noise and changed the streaming perspective.

“I will change the perspective in preparation for the appearance of unknown monsters. It’s also because there might be people who have motion sickness looking from my perspective.”

-Weeeeek!

-There are already many of us with motion sickness.

-It is a very, very, very late choice.

-Is he kidding right now?

-I’ll change my underwear first.

However, viewers were already dizzy. It was natural since they shared the dizzying view of the wall for over an hour. After that, Hyeonu walked diligently. He walked until he couldn’t see Phinis, and a mountain appeared in front of his eyes.

Hyeonu arrived faster than he thought. It had taken longer when he moved with Tang-E, but that was because he did all types of things with Tang-E. This time, Hyeonu was just focused on streaming and exchanging simple questions and answers with the viewers, so he arrived much faster.

‘Shall I deal out the last bait?’

Hyeonu’s publicity had two concepts. One concept aimed at players who couldn’t go to the East Continent, and the other concept seduced those who were between the levels of rankers and regular players. Hyeonu was about to start with the latter concept.

“I haven’t figured it out yet, but I roughly know the level of the monsters on Canary Mountain here,” Hyeonu continued to speak as he entered the interior of Canary Mountain. He was waiting for monsters to come out.

-This is the first time many people have heard of Phinis, so shouldn’t the level of the monsters be quite high?

-Or it could be very low.

-Still, I wish that it is higher. The Hejin Great Mountain Range is too full.

The viewers shared their wishes. In recent years, the average level of players had risen, and the fields had started to become crowded.

-It isn’t just the level of being full. It is like an ant cave.

-It is just a group of dogs, dogs.

-Rather than hunting in the Hejin Great Mountain Range, I’d rather go to a field that is one level lower.

In particular, there was a joke that the Hejin Great Mountain Range had more players than monsters. These were who Hyeonu was aiming for—the latecomers who had nowhere to go. At this time, a black boar the size of a small car appeared in the distance. The molars of the boar were huge, sharp, and as black as the fur. Everything was black except for its greasy yellow eyes.

“This is the ‘black wild boar’ that most often appears at the beginning of Canary Mountain. Think of the wild boar that you know about. It is reckless, straightforward, and quick.”

Kung kung kung! It snorted wildly as it discovered Hyeonu and started running toward him. Every time it stomped its feet, a lot of the ground was dug up, and it accelerated quickly simultaneously. The distance of tens of meters was narrowed down in an instant. Even so, Hyeonu was still speaking at ease.

“I don't know the exact level, but I got a rough estimate. They are stronger than the monsters in the Hejin Great Mountain Range but not as strong as the black-maned lions in the Balder Mountains.”

It wasn’t until he finished speaking that Hyeonu moved. The Mysterious Sky Sword cut through the air, leaving only a dark afterimage in the place where it passed by. The boar struggled to stop the ominous light that struck it. However, because it was running with all of its power, it was hard for the boar to stop its heavy body. Eventually, a black sword pierced the boar.

“Uweeeek!” The boar screamed with pain.

Even after it got pierced, the boar continued to run due to inertia.

Thump! The boar finally stopped due to a giant tree, colliding against it and then collapsing.

[The black wild boar has been killed.]

[Experience has been acquired.]

“As you can see, this is the level. Isn’t it scary?” Hyeonu spoke as he pushed the Mysterious Sky Sword into the sheath.

Yet Hyeonu’s words had no credibility at all. Who could say that a monster was strong when it was killed with a single blow? Nevertheless, Hyeonu was Alley Leader, so his words were credible. After all, there was already a precedent.

-He killed monsters in one shot in the Balder Mountains.

-Of course, this was also a one-shot.

-It is still amazing every time I see it. How did he become stronger so quickly?

-Is this right? Then I have to find out where Phinis is. It seems worth going even if it is roughly the same as the Hejin Great Mountain Range.

It had already been proven from previous streams that Alley Leader couldn’t be evaluated according to normal standards. So they could only believe it. Every monster seemed to be equal in front of Alley Leader. It was like his skill, ‘You and I in One Shot!’.

“I never lie. I am an icon of trust, an icon of truth. I am Alley Leader. If this turns out to be false, then the next streaming will be conducted only by Tang-E, not me. Of course, this is if it is false. You can’t accuse me falsely.”

Hyeonu used his superpower. Tang-E—it was to use him. Unsurprisingly, the response from the viewers was immediate.

-Call!!!

-No canceling!

-Alley Leader, tell me where Phinis is right now!! I’ll verify it!

-I’m going as well! There is nowhere I can’t go if it means seeing Tang-E for seven or eight hours.

-I’m low level, so I’ll have to buy a return scroll later. I have to go to the construction site!

The chat window exploded. It was just like when Hyeonu finished a scenario quest or when the East Continent was first unveiled. The viewers’ reaction wasn’t inferior at all. Rather, it was hotter. This was Tang-E’s current status. Compared to him, Hyeonu was only number two.

He would use ‘below one person, above 10,000 people’ if he needed a saying to express it. Above Hyeonu was a golden furred bear, Tang-E—the absolute number one in the world.

*** 

“The fourth person to join Crescent Moon is Mason. He is the one you know. Mason is the disciple of a great magician and my dear little brother.”

-Yes, please put the location of Phinis on your channel as soon as possible.

-I’m going to be dizzy, so come on!

-I don’t care about Mason. Phinis!!

The viewers weren’t concerned about Mason at all. Usually, the mention of the successor of Rockefeller and the disciple of a great magician was enough to create an issue. However, now Tang-E was covering everything. The audience couldn’t let go of their love and attention for him. They just repeated the same words, hoping to see Tang-E for a long time even if the odds were unlikely. The viewers were like fanatics.

“I understand. I will immediately end the stream and upload today’s streaming video with a detailed article explaining where Phinis is located. Then see you next time. Hahat!”

*** 

There were people who were eagerly performing their duties even when Hyeonu was streaming.

A black nameplate could be seen between the dozens of paper stacked up like towers, and it contained words engraved in white—‘Prosecutor Kim Junsik’.

Kim Junsik was staying up all night today to investigate the Korean Arena League match-fixing case.

“Investigator-nim, when will it be over?” He asked as he drank cold coffee from a vending machine.

“Prosecutor-nim, why are you asking me that? I’m going to die. Every day I’m going here and there to catch one jerk and then another jerk. Can’t you just let me rest?” The man who looked 10 years older than Kim Junsik was trembling. There was deep fatigue in his eyes, so perhaps he wasn’t bluffing.

“Why should I let you rest? At this point, I should give my teacher’s wife a call. Investigator Park already wants to rest.”

Investigator Park smiled bitterly at Kim Junsik’s joke. “Ah, can’t I even joke? This is between us.”

“Between us? What is our relationship?”

“Isn’t it a lifelong relationship between a prosecutor and an investigator? You will be responsible for my retirement,” Investigator Park replied with a big smile.

It only lasted a moment though. Investigator Park’s eyes widened as he stared at his smartphone. Then he put his smartphone back in his pocket and turned his head to tell Kim Junsik, “Now isn’t the time for this. Go in and sleep, Prosecutor-nim.”

His eyes were curved in a half-moon shape as he grinned.

“What does that mean, Investigator-nim?” Kim Junsik asked as he put down the coffee he had been drinking.

“You have to show your face all over the country tomorrow morning, so you should take care of it from now on. You won’t be able to get married if you appear in public with that rotten face.”

In response to Investigator Park’s remark, Kim Junsik smiled, poured out the remaining coffee, and crumpled up the empty paper cup.

“Then I’ll take a nap and go to the sauna.”

6th Anniversary Event Link (Submission Final Date: 15th November)