Chapter 155

[Title: If Park Yeonwoo’s Re-awakening Is Real]

The competition rate for Ssahiro’s Zenith Must be insane

As the nation buzzed with reactions that Yeonwoo must have Re-awakened, Roy himself could not hide his surprise.

‘He was that strong?’

Roy already knew Yeonwoo had Re-awakened at rank B, but he never imagined this level of performance. Of course, compared to barely forming three arrows at a time, Yeonwoo’s skill had visibly improved after Re-awakening. He could now unleash hundreds of tiny, needle-like beams of light above a Blood Fiend’s head. But Roy never expected Yeonwoo to produce arrows indefinitely like that. Even in the last survival round, it wasn’t this extreme.

‘Did he hide it on purpose?’

Given Yeonwoo’s prankster nature, he might have deliberately concealed his power to surprise everyone. Then Roy quickly guessed the real reason: Yeonwoo’s Re-awakening condition was “needle creation.” He had focused training solely on meeting that condition, never pushing himself to see just how many arrows he could make. Calm on the surface, Yeonwoo probably {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} didn’t know his own limits, either.

‘Still, it seems like more than twenty arrows...?’

Moreover, Yeonwoo’s face on screen showed no sign of fatigue.

Alongside Yeonwoo’s composed dispatching of Blood Fiends, the live chat scrolled at a terrifying speed. Roy paused at one comment and immediately checked Yeonwoo’s rank. Hoping against hope, he found no further rank change. Yet the atmosphere felt subtly different. He wasn’t sure how, but something significant had shifted within Yeonwoo.

‘Well, that’s one worry eased.’

Just as Roy quietly exhaled in relief, Taeeon beside him let out a long breath.

“Wow....”

Moments ago he’d been cursing the producers, and now his mouth hung open in continuous awe. Then he murmured to someone—Roy wasn’t sure whom.

“Amazing.... I wonder if I could do that?”

Roy looked around in confusion, then pointed at himself with one finger and asked,

“Were you talking about me?”

“Huh? Oh, I said that out loud? It was just to myself—wondering how I’d fare in that situation.”

“Aren’t you about to face a similar situation soon?”

“Well, yeah....”

Taeeon trailed off awkwardly, as if he weren’t even there, and gave a sheepish smile. Roy tapped his shoulder and asked what he was so worried about.

“You’ve got a higher rank than him. No need to fret.”

Roy knew rank wasn’t everything, but Taeeon was certainly no weakling—if anything, stronger than Yeonwoo.

“And if it’s unbearable, just step out halfway. Didn’t I say the winner’s Roy anyway?”

“Pfft! True.”

Taeeon burst into laughter. His pride was endearing, and knowing Roy’s words weren’t just bravado put his mind at ease. While the two chatted, Yeonwoo finished off the last Blood Fiend and achieved an all-kill.

[Yeonwoo: Hah, hah.....]

Yeonwoo, sweat-drenched, surveyed the empty archery range. His arm had trembled unusually when firing the final arrow—he must have pushed himself too hard. Moments later, a notification chimed that the round had ended, and the range view faded away. At that instant, cheers erupted from the stands and waiting room.

“Whoaah!”

“Damn, Park Yeonwoo is a man!”

Forgetting he was a competitor, the other participants cheered sincerely for Yeonwoo’s achievement as a fellow Awakener.

[24:11:07]

As Yeonwoo stepped out through the blue portal, the timer above the gate stopped and his final score was tallied. Confronted with thunderous applause, Yeonwoo staggered back in embarrassment. Then he spotted Han Gyeol approaching and turned his head.

[Seo Han Gyeol: Park Yeonwoo, great effort.]

Han Gyeol, surprised that the first contestant succeeded so easily, continued,

[Seo Han Gyeol: Who will you nominate as the next challenger?]

After a brief moment of thought, Yeonwoo curled his lips into a mischievous grin. Roy and Taeeon, watching in real time from the waiting room, shivered.

“Seriously....”

“Yeonwoo, please....”

As expected, Yeonwoo did not disappoint.

[Yeonwoo: Kim Taeeon.]

“Ah....”

Taeeon, as if resigned, pressed his palm to his forehead and lowered his head when his name was called.

[Yeonwoo: Ham ah, better to take it first, right? Fight! I did it, so you can too!]

Yeonwoo spared no encouragement for his chosen next contestant and stepped off the stage. At the same time, the waiting room door opened and a staff member appeared.

“Kim Taeeon, please proceed.”

Taeeon looked up at the voice calling him. Thinking that if he had to go through it anyway, he might as well get it over with, he steeled himself and gave Roy an awkward grin.

“Roy, I’ll be back.”

✧

Thus, Kim Taeeon stood before the blue portal as the second contestant. Following archery prodigy Park Yeonwoo, the excitement over this local celebrity showed no signs of cooling.

[Title: Even the Coffee King Is a King]

(‘경★Son of Gangwon Province Kim Taeeon! B-Rank Re-awakening★Congratulations’ banner.jpg)

Let’s aim for an A-rank Re-awakening this time~!

└ Yeah, the Gangwon governor hung it up

[Title: Clearly a Well-Bred Prince]

Did he ever face hardship or pain in life? I hear he’s the epitome of Mr. Perfect

└ Why? Being an owner is good, isn’t it?

└ Demanding customers

└ lol got it

└ Where’s the outlet? (three laptops + a power strip)

└ I ordered an iced Americano, it’s too cold—refund, please

└ I already drank it? (left to save seats and came back)

└ It’s okay you can eat it (ramen with kimbap, kimchi—snack party)

└ One espresso, please. And six cups of hot water

└ One extra shot and iced water (same type)

└ Is this real??? Do people like this exist..?

└ Not China?

└ I’m a barista here and I see them every day

└ Just reading this gives me PTSD lol

└ Café owners... what battles must you face...

└ Sounds unreal? It’s true

└ At 22 I’d have been more princely too

[Title: If All the Café Nightmares Show Up]

Wouldn’t that be a disaster?

All the café owners watching live might pass out from PTSD

└ You might meet a Blood Fiend once in your life, but nightmare customers every day

└ Imagined it—it’s scarier, sorry café owners

└ Yes

[Title: They Say the Coffee King Is a College Student]

I found MT talent shows the scariest

└ Facts

Community posts about Taeeon began appearing one after another. The most notable fact was that he was both a café owner and a college student. Having witnessed the previous contestant’s terror, viewers each speculated on Taeeon’s own nightmare. Meanwhile, Taeeon appeared on stage, facing the blue portal.

[Seo Han Gyeol: Kim Taeeon, are you ready?]

[Taeeon: Yes.]

Moments ago he’d fretted beside Roy, but now he answered calmly and stepped through the blue portal without hesitation.

✧

Under a clear sky, gentle slopes were lined with endless green trees. Between glossy leaves hung unripe little cherries like stars—undoubtedly coffee plants. Ssah-bit! As the chirping of birds mingled with a cool breeze, the scent of earth and grass wafted faintly. At the same moment, Taeeon instinctively realized where he was.

‘...Australia?’

A few years ago, he had impulsively left for Australia after telling his parents he wanted to become a barista. Though it wasn’t quite a full year of study abroad, the coffee plantation near Brisbane he visited for a field trip looked exactly like this. But any sense of nostalgia vanished quickly as Taeeon felt puzzled.

‘But why here?’

Those ten months in Australia had been his dream city where he could gain conviction in his dream—and some of the happiest times of his life. Of course, life abroad wasn’t easy. He’d faced racism, and in the early days, his poor English meant sleepless nights of language study. Yet if anyone asked whether he’d return to that time, he’d answer “yes” without hesitation. So the present scene before him could only be bewildering.

‘...What is this?’

Taeeon tilted his head in confusion.