Chapter 174
The pure white aura coalesced into a human form.
Within the system known as the Training Hall, this being only grants a meal to those who have defeated the 9th-stage AI.
Indeed.
The figure before him was quite the expensive body.
[unknown]
A name appeared above the summoned silhouette.
It wasn’t Seojun. He hadn’t entered the Training Hall in quite a while.
So naturally, he had lost the title.
Due to the AI limitations mentioned earlier.
If they had injected the 10th stage with the utmost prowess a computer could calculate and create, perhaps it would have become an impregnable, strongest ‘Cheolsu’ (for reference, Seojun also named the AI Cheolsu) that no one could ever defeat.
But no.
The 10th-stage AI learned through the movements of the opponents it faced.
Thus, unless it could learn everything about a single person, it was inevitably weaker than the original.
‘Before, Sin Hayeon caught the AI in a week, and I praised her for it, dispensing some wisdom.’
Thinking back, Sin Hayeon hadn’t failed to defeat him—more precisely, the 10th stage—right away.
At the time, the 10th-stage AI wasn’t at a level that would have troubled her for days.
Yet it took her that long, so.
‘She must have used it as a stepping stone for her own skills.’
As expected.
She’s a terrifying one.
Of course, Seojun had somewhat guessed as much and had promptly updated it again.
It was absolutely not because he wanted to reclaim what was taken in one go, or because it was the perfect time to reveal himself.
It was purely for the sake of his juniors.
But after that, he’d gone in occasionally, then simply stopped.
There were limits, and there was no need to maintain that position.
They say that, until now, only Sin Hayeon had insisted on keeping the spot.
It was possible because her skill backed it up.
‘Anyway, her personality is...’
Ugh.
Filthy enough to impress even Seojun.
In any case, the being that appeared before him was male.
You could tell at a glance.
Male.
Though the information was private and couldn’t be precisely identified, you could clearly tell man from woman.
They should have designed it more androgynously.
Anyway.
It wasn’t... the first time, but it reminded him of when he first gripped a sword in the Training Hall after entering virtual reality seven years ago.
He had never expected to reach this level.
To reaffirm his original intent, he should take down this opponent.
He didn’t know who it was, but the level must be higher than before.
That’s the mechanic.
“Hyung...”
“Oh. Why? Wait a bit? It’s been a while, I think it’ll be fun to fight this one first.”
Perhaps because the word ‘original intent’ had come to mind.
His body didn’t... burn with excitement.
Seojun simply thought he’d check how much it had improved and gather some intelligence.
Whatever it was, the throne of the Training Hall was an intriguing element.
“Oh! Right!”
“We should see the true skill of our team’s ace first!”
“But if Seojun-nim sees our skills, won’t the reverse gap be insane?”
See.
Weren’t his teammates brimming with interest?
The viewers are loving it too.
- Oh? lolololol Are we reclaiming it?
- Who was the 10th stage now?
- It’s unknown for now lololol
- Info) For a while, it was Sin Hayeon, Baek Doyul, and Taker holding it in rotation, then Sin Hayeon suddenly switched to private info, and the other two followed suit, so no one knows if the current opponent is Baek Doyul or Taker.
- Why not Sin Hayeon?
- You think it’d be her? You madman lololol
Seojun absorbed this information while reading Ha Yunho’s chat.
‘Oh?’
Weren’t both candidates currently in RIOS?
‘Are they truly such attention whores that they never miss these things?’
That’s even better.
The smile on Seojun’s lips deepened.
And Lee Dongsu, who had read the exact same chat, was shocked once more.
‘Ah! Taker!’
He had only paid attention to Baek Doyul and already knew that the unknown’s identity was Baek Doyul.
The reason was that he had little interest in the Training Hall and only remembered asking Sin Hayeon, out of curiosity who had been the last to quit, and being told it was Baek Doyul.
‘Mountain upon mountain.’
Anyway, that duplicate is Baek Doyul, but what if Seojun draws aggro?
Hahaha.
Lee Dongsu was surprisingly weak against controversy and insults.
The reason he endured being a pro gamer, constantly in the spotlight and caught up in all sorts of rumors, was simply that he ignored it.
He didn’t look.
Naturally, most internet posts were only harmful to him if he read them.
There were more raw insults than proper criticism or feedback.
So he avoided them.
But he had wanted to stream, to get closer and see proper, milder reactions.
And now, if Seojun drew aggro as usual?
It was bound to be incredibly burdensome.
He’d watched the streams occasionally, so he knew. Was Seojun normal?
In all likelihood, it wouldn’t happen, but even if things went wrong and only Seojun got cursed out, it would be a burden.
He liked moderate attention, but excessive attention was a no.
“Hyung.”
Please.
‘I can’t even explain in detail because we’re live. Ugh, I really didn’t know he’d summon the 10th stage, sniffing out aggro like a bloodhound from the very start. Damn it.’
You’re usually so damn quick-witted; can’t you read my mind this once?
Lee Dongsu sent Seojun a desperate look.
Of course.
‘Knowing him, he’d probably use that damn quick wit to read it, then grin and do exactly what I hate.’
Anyway, he had no other option.
If there was one, it would be that Baek Doyul and Taker were at least somewhat rational and wouldn’t react at all?
‘But if they were that kind of person, they wouldn’t have had that pride war with Hayeon-noona in the Training Hall.’
Seojun’s eyes met his.
Please, don’t do anything, just end it.
That’s the best.
The next best is to reclaim the 10th stage spot without any provocation.
Seojun grins.
He nods as if he fully understands what he’s trying to say.
The anxiety only amplified.
Ignoring that, Ha Yunho handed a sword to Seojun.
“Shall we see it then? The swordsmanship of the so-renowned Seojun-nim.”
Wind Sword also spoke up.
“I haven’t done it for For the Sake of the Alliance, but you were absolutely insane there. I watch Sword God’s mad movies sometimes.”
- for real lololol
- Cheonma-nim’s swordsmanship is really...
- Now that I think about it, I’ve never seen the streamer in the Training Hall?
- Isn’t For the Sake of the Alliance basically the Training Hall?
- Don’t know, everyone shut up. Let’s watch this.
- Crazy lololol The streamer is fighting a 10-level AI that’s leveled up like a burst dam for a while? I can’t stand it, okay?
- These bastards always can’t stand it
- Control yourself!
- But it’s not just the streamer. There’s no footage of pros in the Training Hall either.
Rumi, also reading the chat, added a word.
“Wow. Now that I think about it, that’s true. There aren’t any videos of the champion changing, are there? Or only from the very early days. After Sin Hayeon started dominating... there’s nothing.”
There were no videos.
From the early days when the AI’s level wasn’t that high.
And the videos from after the barrier gradually appeared, when even skilled players who beat the 9th stage couldn’t touch it, and only pros could interfere.
“Huhuhu. Let’s see.”
Alpaca had seen it before.
Taewoo had shown him a video once.
But he couldn’t help but anticipate it anyway.
“See?”
Seojun, having read Lee Dongsu’s worry through his face at some point, twirled the sword a few times.
Lee Dongsu couldn’t bring himself to stop him and just nodded.
* * *
- Kyah
- They’re showing this
- Videos of beating the 10th-stage AI are crazy rare
- Came here after hearing rumors
- They haven’t even won yet and you’re already saying they won, calling it a rare video, lolololol
- Honestly, it’s not even the person themselves, it’s AI; you think they can’t win? They’ve got a record already.
- Who knows. You think the other two pros stopped competing here for nothing? The level has definitely gotten insanely high.
- Incomparably higher than before? Seems like it.
- But isn’t Seojun turning on his stream? If it’s a perspective thing, it’s better to have choices. Though watching from afar does make it easier to see.
“Seojun-nim, want to just turn on your stream early? The viewers seem to want it.”
“Yes, understood.”
[Streaming started.]
[.]
Normally, Seojun might have used the stream title to provoke here.
Drawing aggro to gather viewers, or something.
He’d be lying if he said the thought hadn’t crossed his mind the moment he heard about the pro gamers.
Because it was fun.
However, Seojun decided to be considerate of Lee Dongsu.
So that.
‘If something blows up here and he says he won’t come next time, what then.’
Seojun was looking at the future.
The future after RIOS ended.
Because, just like with For the Sake of the Alliance, getting help from a skilled player like Lee Dongsu was truly no easy task.
‘It’s a shame, but.’
He readjusted his grip on the sword. Seojun’s body leaned forward.
“Here I go.”
[Viewer Count – 15,000]
And at the same time.
Seojun and Cheolsu’s bodies rushed toward each other.
The rule was simple.
Whoever lands 10 successful attacks first wins.
Clang!
Metal clashed and sprang apart.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Each exchange of swords cut deeper than before.
Cheolsu had.
Grown.
The blade flying to stab him was like a swift falcon.
Concise and fast.
Whose trait was that?
Baek Doyul? Taker?
He didn’t know.
But.
‘It’s rather easy.’
When two have the same speed, being fast means being bold.
And it means seizing the timing half a beat faster.
But in a battle of wits.
This AI—and Baek Doyul or Taker—could never defeat Seojun.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
While the swords swirled dazzlingly without pause, the AI’s health somehow rapidly depleted.
In contrast, Seojun’s health remained untouched.
‘I’ll just end it quickly.’
He couldn’t even provoke.
And there was no use for it.
So Seojun had decided from the start to just finish it without anything extra.
- What’s this? lololol
- Are only those two using speed boosts in the Training Hall?
- You think the 10th stage has a feature like that? lolololololol
- It’s just your eyes are too low-level to perceive it. I’m even lower so I can’t tell at all! Haha
If before he tested various actions like punches or kicks that didn’t register damage judgments,
Now it was solely movement to end it quickly.
Thus.
[HP 3]
[HP 2]
[HP 1]
[HP 0]
Perhaps a minute passed.
[You have won the spar.]
The opponent’s health was fully exhausted.
“Whoa!”
“No, what’s this? Why is it so smooth?”
“Wow! That was great to see!”
Seojun turned back to his teammates.
[The 10th-stage AI will attempt to mimic the user.]
When Seojun pressed accept, his name instantly rose to the 10th stage.
“Huh? Doesn’t this data accumulation thing take some time? It changed right away.”
Ha Yunho asked, sounding intrigued.
“My data is already learned. Since it only needs to learn this one match, it’s simple. So from now on, I’m the 10th stage.”
Seojun shrugged as if it were nothing, then smiled and looked at Lee Dongsu.
Now.
This was holding back well enough, right? No provocation, just a moderate victory.
If this was called aggro, then the world was just unfairly dumping on Seojun.
‘Time to give some advice.’
But.
Lee Dongsu’s face had hardened.
Why.
Again.
What now.
* * *
The chat of Mental, who had been chatting idly, was flooded with talk about Seojun.
This was natural, and it was something they’d mention briefly then move on.
But.
- What’s this, how did he not even get hit once?
- The catch was one thing, but he didn’t take a single hit.
- More than that, the time is absolutely legendary, f* lolololol It didn’t even take a minute?
- I went to watch and he’d already caught it lolololol
- Even if it’s the 10th stage, is it because it’s AI?????? He caught it insanely easily?
- No, really, what’s this? Is this how it usually is?
- Seems like the pros all catch it like that?
- Maybe the 10th stage is just overrated ㄷㄷ
- That streamer over there is a bubble maker lolololol He turned the orthodox faction into bubbles too.
“......”
“Haha... The viewers are all talking about him. Coach Baek Doyul! Shall we watch the video too?”
Mental asked cautiously, gauging Baek Doyul’s reaction.
If he were broadcasting alone, Mental would have rushed to watch immediately.
“Hmm...”
“......”
“Let’s take a look.”
Baek Doyul’s eyes narrowed, and at that moment.
‘He brought down the 10th stage in under a minute without taking a single hit?’
Ha.
‘Interesting.’
The aggro was drawn.
And this aggro was the same for the other players.